


Whiskey Lullaby

by RachielDen



Category: Dragon Age - All Media Types
Genre: Alcohol, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Bar, Dark Solas, Depression, Elves are in charge, Evanuris in charge, F/M, Fluff, Hate, He died but he is back, In Hiding, Its a weird world where Evanuris and the Chantry clash, Mages, Mages are chipped like cattle, Magic, Past Lives, Rebellion, Romance, Smoking, Smut, Still in Thedas though, Templars, War, fast burn, i hate myself sometimes, not sure where I am going with this, paint ball, tragic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-20
Updated: 2018-02-22
Packaged: 2019-03-21 16:06:11
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 9
Words: 36,539
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13744488
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RachielDen/pseuds/RachielDen
Summary: Her name is Scarlett Lavellan. Though she goes by Lottie, thank you very much. There was a rebellion, a war, a fearless leader, death, and a sacrifice. It happened long ago, now she lives on the edges of society, content to drink her life away in the company of good friends. But one night when Fen'Harel walks into her bar during spring break shit hits the fan.*A/N: New fic, everything I have written for it has been posted. Updates will now come at a slower pace. As I have it written I will post them.





	1. Sex and Sin

**Author's Note:**

> Hello all! If you are reading Garas Vhenas (my other story) have no fear! It shall continue. I wrote this before that one and for some reason this is nagging at me, constantly at the back of my mind. So grinding out a new few chapters and I figured that I'd post it. 
> 
> As always, kudos and comments are appreciated. This one may be a little weird in updating, but I have ideas for it. So, it will be a ride. 
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

Chapter 1 'Sex and Sin'          

"Hey!" Lottie screamed, her gaze locked around a bunch of men around her jukebox. "You break it you buy it assholes!"

            Across the bar, The Iron Bull pushed off the wall and started toward the subject of his boss's ire, cracking his knuckles as he went. Sera hustled behind the bar slamming beers and shots of liquor into people's hands, her own swiping across the counter to collect the money left behind.

            Bull slammed someone into jukebox and the record skipped. Lottie whipped around, eyes scanning the crowd.

            "Bull! That goes for you to! Take it outside." Her voice barely audible above the din of the crowd.

            "Sorry boss." He called over his shoulder. Bull's eyes narrowed as he picked up two of them and started toward the door. The other three started throwing punches, he just laughed as he tossed the men across the room.

            Lottie rolled her eyes. "Sera you got this?" She didn't wait for the other woman's reply as she went into the back to get more liquor. "Gods I'll be grateful when spring break is over…" Her boots clicked across the floor as she picked up a crate and started back, dread wound its way through her.

            Sera raged as hands wrapped around her and tried to lift her across the bar and into the crowd. Her fists flew connecting with their thrashing bodies, not all of them deterred. Iron Bull was tossing bodies aside trying to get to her, the five men still hounding him as he steadily made his way across the room. Elation flooded Bull at the thought of the oncoming fight.

            Lottie bust back through the door Thumper in her hand, crate at her feet.

            "Sera!" She cried as she tossed the Thumper to her. Sera's hand closed around the bat and they started backing away. Bull still waded his way through the crowed head and shoulders clearly visible above the rest.

            Sera connected the bat to someone's shin and they screamed in pain, hopping on one foot back into the writing crowd. She went to swing it again but someone had caught it. Angry eyes turned to the source.

            Bull finally made his way to Sera. He scooped her up and placed her on his shoulder. She stood, one foot on each of his horns, blond hair swinging violently as she egged the crowd on.

            "Come get it ya twits!" Her voice rang out, and with Bull beneath her the crowd backed up a little. Lottie reached under the bar, her hands closing around her baby. She brought it up, and pulled back on the pump, loading a bullet into the barrel.

Her voice wasn't audible as she screamed for Bull and Sera to get out. The word _Reason_ scratched onto the side of the stock. Cold fury wound its way through her, how dare they come in here and pull this shit in her bar?

            Bull's eyes locked with Lottie's and he started wading out of them. He had been hit with a bean bag from the gun before and didn't want to repeat the experience.

            "Out!" Lottie screamed, she stood on the bar, feet planted in a wide stance. The crowd turned to her; she tossed her red hair over her shoulder and pointed the barrel at the first person who thought to lay their hands on her. "Out." She growled again. The crowd back up, the first five had their hands in the air. 

            A string of curses falling from their lips as they left, barrel trained on their backs.

            "Now, can we all be civil?" Lottie asked, barrel pointed at the counter of her bar. People went about righting chairs and sitting down. She nodded and climbed down. "Stupid spring break."

            Bull walked over to the bar and Sera hopped off of her perch on his horns, quickly going back to work, an extra bounce in her step. Sera liked violence.

            Bull held out a hand to Lottie and she placed her hand in his and he helped her down from the bar.

            "Was it really necessary to get the gun?" His hand engulfed hers.

            "Once they saw Reason it was over." She laughed, feet firmly planted on the floor again. She looked at her watch, 1:45. "Besides the night is almost over." She patted Bull on the shoulder and he ruffled her hair.

            The elation that had started in Iron Bull spread to the women. He walked back to the door and kept an eye on his girls. His gaze watching the crowd carefully; his ears picked up Lottie screaming ' _last call'_.

            The crowd started thinning a little, no one wanted to see Reason again. When the last body filtered through the door Bull locked it.

            "You two go home, it's late and you deserve it." Lottie smiled at them, Sera shook her head.

            "Can't. Waiting on my psycho brother to get me." She winced as she said the words. "He's such a nutter." Her hands were busy wiping down the counter, getting rid of the spilled booze from the night.

            "He can't be that bad Sera," Bull commented.

            "I told you I'd take you home, I know your car is in the shop." Lottie called out, sympathy in her tone. She had never met Sera's brother but had heard horror stories from her childhood and didn't really want to meet him. Ever.

            "Make you drive two hours out of the way? Now you're the nutter." Sera stacked the stool on the table. Lottie was running one of the big industrial brooms across the floor collecting the broken bottles and glass.

            Bull grabbed his coat, happy to escape the coming conversation. His goodbyes fell on deaf ears as he scooted into the darkness.

            "It's not a big deal. Your family is shit." Lottie tossed the glass in a tub and picked it up headed toward the larger dumpster out back.

            "Rich hoity toity bastards." Sera grumbled as she crossed to the jukebox and tossed in a few quarters, her head bobbed to the beat as she continued to stack the chairs.

            When Lottie walked back into the room, it wasn't just her head bobbing anymore. She stared at Sera for a moment before the woman noticed her. Laughter rang out as Sera shimmied her way across the room and dragged Lottie into a dance, but not before she snagged two beers from behind the counter.

            They danced like no one was watching, which lucky for them, no one was. Hips shook as they moved between the tables, beer sloshed from the bottles and Lottie tipped hers back, quickly draining it and setting the bottle on a chair.

            Giggles fell from lips as they started swing dancing. Sera swung Lottie into a table, chairs crashed to the floor. Lottie grabbed at her arm, glaring at the younger woman.

            "Really?" She asked as Sera grabbed her sides, more laughter falling from her lips.

            "Funny yeah?" She asked through the snorts. Lottie grabbed the bottle from Sera's hands and growled obscenities at her, arm still throbbing. The music switched to a slower dance and Sera groaned. Her hand slammed into it as she picked a new song.

            "When is your brother getting here?" Lottie checked her watch again, tapping it when the hands didn't move. Sera still bobbed awkwardly in front of the jukebox. Lottie sighed as she picked up the chairs that had fallen down. "I'm getting too old for this."

            Sera snorted again, "You're what, thirty-seven?" A bottle crashed into the wall, she curled in on herself, still laughing despite the glass that scattered across the floor.

            "I am twenty-eight!" Lottie shot at her, lifting the other woman's beer to her lips as she drained the contents. "And you're seven." The women laughed and finished their cleaning. Not that it would do any good, spring break had one more day before the little frat boys and their groupies left town.

            "Say goodbye to your lover Sera, I don't have all night." A cold voice called out. Lottie jumped and gave a little squeak. She spun to the door, it was unlocked. Bull always locked that door before leaving.

            "She isn't my lover you prick." Sera's voice was shrill as she crossed the room. Her form vanished through the door as she headed to the back, anger pooled in her stomach. She hated her family.

            "How did you get in here?" Lottie asked as she picked up the empty bottle. His gaze slid to her, and she studied him. He would have towered over her if she stood next to him and was bald, but it didn't look bad on him. She could barely make out freckles that dotted their way across his nose. A little scar next to his eyebrow brought a little bit of character to his face.

            He wore a gray shirt that clung to him tightly, it peeks out at her from behind his black coat that hung down to the back of his knees, one button was closed at his waist, and his hands were hidden in his pockets. His blue jeans were tight across his thighs, loafers showed under the edges of his pants. She saw his blue-gray eyes study her in return.

            She knew what he saw sharp cheek bones, unnatural red hair and green eyes; scars adorn her jaw and she wished his eyes didn't linger on them. This was the image she created when she went off the grid. Her true appearance was much more… attention grabbing.

            Lottie glared at him as his eyes moved from her face and traveled down. Suddenly she is self-conscious about what she is wearing even though it is her every day apparel; tight jeans, her clod stomper boots and a sleeveless shirt.

            Lottie snapped her fingers; his eyes once more met hers. "Hey, how did you get in here? The door was locked." She pointed and his head turned to follow her finger.

            "So it was." He spoke; Lottie noticed that his tone was less cold than when he addressed his sister. He watched as one of her eyebrows rose and her hand fell to her side.

            Sera burst through the door, her back slung over her shoulder. She stalked toward the front door. Her brother cleared his throat and she stopped in her tracks.

            "Manners Sera?" He was still looking at Lottie. Sera grumbled, the anger working its way up her throat.

            "Don't manners me dickbag." Her back stiffened as she glared at the wall, wondering what manners he was talking about. He was just here to pick her up and she'd thank him later.

            "Aren't you going to introduce us?" His body turned slightly and amusement danced in his eyes. He loved getting under his sisters skin, and sometimes it was easy. Like tonight.

            Sera groaned as she stomped back. "Solas, Lottie. Lottie, Solas." Her hand waved between the two of them, Lottie crossed her arms across her chest. Solas watched his little sister angrily stomp from the bar. "Arse." Came floating through the door before it closed with more force then necessary.

            Lottie's eyes narrowed further as a smug smirk played across his face.

            "Lottie?" He asked as he started across the room toward her. "Interesting name for a woman."

            "Yes, well I find Scarlett a bit pretentious, like certain company." Once he was close enough she could feel magic radiating from him. It snapped and crackled over her like lightening. It lit her nerve endings on fire and she pulled his scent past her olfactory sense; filing it away with the rest of them.

            He held out his hand and stared down at her. She glared at the hand and debated the outcomes of touching him. "Excuse me."

            She stepped around him and his outstretched hand, Lottie was headed for the front door. Right as she reached the door the bolt slid and it locked. With rushed fingers she opened it, anxiety flooding her.

            "Sera!" She whispered as she flung the door open. The parking lot was empty except for one car. She knew that Sera came from money and rejected it, but she hadn't been expecting the casual sleek vehicle. She had been expecting a limo and a driver.

Lottie picked up a pebble and chucked it at the car, unwilling to leave her scent next to the metal beast that purred in her parking lot. Paranoia rode her hard anytime the magical elite stepped into her life.

            "Sera!" She whispered again, the woman opened the car her blond hair sticking up in different directions.

 

Solas watched the woman step around him and he caught her scent. It washed over him, and he closed his eyes intrigued; she tasted like sin and chocolate. The whole bar was permeated with her.

            He passed a lazy eye over the bar, following the scent trail. With a wave of his hand images danced before him, replaying the events of the night. A smile washed across his face, and pleasure slid up his spine.

            He watched as the echo of Scarlett and Sera danced across the room.

            _Such a tantalizing woman_. The thought flicked through his mind as he turned, a finger dispelling the images, and headed toward the door. Why was she so gun shy around him?

 

"You didn't tell me you came from magic!" Lottie extended her senses to Sera and caught nothing. There was no trace of it on her, no scent for her to pick up. She knew there wouldn't be but still her mind traced over Sera looking for anything.

            "Pffbt.." Sera snorted. "Me? Magic? Not in my worst nightmares." She passed a hand over her arm, wishing she had a coat. "What does it matter anyway?" She arched an eyebrow at Lottie and started to pick up on her panic. "Did something happen? Did shite biscuit do something to you?"

            Lottie stretched out a hand and stopped her in her tracks. The blond had become incensed at the thought of anyone hurting Lottie. Sera had nothing, her family estranged and distant. Lottie was the only reason Sera wasn't on the streets anymore. Solas was the only one she had any kind of contact with, and it wasn't frequent.

            "No, it's okay Sera. He just caught me off guard." Lottie smiled at the younger woman, spine stiffening again as Solas stepped from the bar, his magic rolling over her again. He probed at her mind and she slammed up a mental wall. She felt fingers trailing against it and shuddered. His magic slid over her and the taste of cinnamon and sex exploded in her mouth. "Have a good night." She gave the younger woman a hug and slid past her brother.

            As she brushed past him some of his magic jumped into her, equalizing the pressure between the two. Shock flooded through him, and she felt his interest in her spike. She jumped away and shoved the foreign magic out of her system.

            _Shit on a Gods damned stick_.

 

"Leave her alone." Sera commanded as her only link to her family drove them out of the lot. "She's been through enough shite already."

            "Why do you say that?" Solas's tone was cool, belaying none of his interest.

            "Just the way she moves. Always jumpy when you people come around." Sera twirled a strand of hair between her fingers and watched the lights of the little town flash by.

            "'You people'?" He asked, a smile forming on his lips, "You do realized you are one of us?"

            "Mum and da made sure I knew where I belonged." She shot back; memories of cold nights in alley ways came back to her; living on the streets with no food and no family.

            "You ran away Sera; no one forced you to leave." Solas chided her, when she shivered he turned on the heat. "You were always welcome."

            "Was not." Her tone grew dark as she remembered living in that _place_. "Their beady little eyes always following me. Waiting for me to shite out magic or somethin…" Her shivers had nothing to do with the crisp night air and everything to do with her childhood.

            "You are being overdramatic Sera, our parents loved you." His eyes trained on her and he watched as she shifted uncomfortably under his gaze.

            "Piss off!" She barked out, and then muttered, "Just keep your eyes on the road."

 

"Dorian." Lottie spoke into her cell, eyes looking out the town she had called home for the last nine months. "I may need a favor. I'm not sure yet, just… call me back please." She cut off the line and shoved the phone back in her pocket.

            Flicking with her thumb she knocked the ashes off the end of her cigarette before bringing it up to her lips and inhaling again. She leaned against the railing on the balcony above the bar.

            Worry worked against her mind. It was never good when a mage showed up out of the blue. Sera mentioned her family rarely. Rich, powerful, basically people not to fuck with. But she had never mention magic.

            Smoke billowed out between her separated lips, and she ground what was left of the cigarette out tossing the butt into the ash tray.

            Her fingers tracing the little scar just below her collar bone as her mind continued to spin out of control. On nights like these she could swear she felt the chip still embedded under her skin, but she remembered the pain as she carved it out of her flesh and went rogue. _Apostate_. Such a filthy word.  

            Her phone beeped and she pulled it out, when the screen lit up a message showed. _I'm coming over._

            Dorian, it seemed, had gotten her message. She shook her head and walked back into bar, sliding the door closed behind her, fingers flicking at the lock. She gave a little tug just to make sure before gathering her things and heading back down to the first floor.

            She walked through the building, shutting off lights and making sure it was closed up tight. Grabbing her helmet she walked out the door and toward the bike under a tarp.

            Lottie's fingers curled around the fabric and with a quick yank displayed the Ducati hidden underneath. Sliding a leg over she settled herself on the seat, when the helmet was on she encouraged the bike to life, it purred between her thighs. The tension slipped from her as she relaxed into the beast beneath her.

 

Dorian was already in her apartment when she walked through the door. His feet perched on the table as he sipped from a wine glass.

            "There you are. I was beginning to worry." He stood and crossed to Lottie. "You know the damage that can cause." His arms encircled her, wine glass bumping into the back of her head.

            "I told you to call me, not portal into my house." She laughed; Dorian relaxed slightly, if she could laugh it wasn't as bad as he feared.

            "Yes, well decent people call before midnight. Three in the morning is crisis time." He drained the rest of the glass and wandered back to the kitchen for another round. "So?" He prompted as the red liquid splashed into his glass, a very generous amount.

            Lottie sighed and tossed her helmet onto the counter. "I think I freaked out over nothing. I'm sorry to have dragged you out." She snagged his glass and took a drink. "Ugh, that is fowl."

            "Nobody asked you to partake." He relieved her of his glass and leaned against the counter, eyes watching as she moved for the harder liquor she kept above the fridge. She pulled a glass down, the barest wisps of skin showing as she stretched.

            Lottie splashed the amber liquid into the glass and drained it. She splashed some more and this time pressed it to her temple. She turned and leaned against the counter, eyes closed as the whiskey worked its way down to her middle; her fingers playing with the scar at her collar.

            "What happened?" He narrowed his eyes at her; she only ever played with that scar for one reason. "Did they find you?" He hissed, eyes dashing to the covered windows.

            "I don't think so." She sipped at her drink, eyes still closed. She tilted her head back and gave a sigh. "Like I said, it's probably nothing." The glass clinked against the counter as she set it down. Dorian watched her open the refrigerator. "I need to go shopping."

            Magic flashed through the apartment and she snapped up, eyes raking the room. Dorian held out a box of Antivan takeout.

            "You never could take care of yourself." He sniffed at her, a small smile playing across his face as her fingers closed around the box.

            "Don't do that." The words were muffled as she spoke with her mouth half full.

            "Jumpy, aren't we? You saw one tonight." She nodded, bringing another bite to her mouth. It was silent in the apartment as he waited for her to finish her mouthful.

            "Yeah, his name is Solas." Dorian's perfect eyebrow rose, "He is Sera's older brother."

            "Sera? As in the woman who works in your bar and has no magic what-so-ever Sera?" Dorian took another sip, his stomach starting to knot. "I thought she didn't have anything to do with her family."

            "I didn't think so either." Lottie set the box down, half of its contents gone already. "But her car is in the shop and she refused to let me take her home. Said it's too far for me to go in the middle of the night. I think she is just afraid of my bike."  The rest of the amber liquid disappeared down her throat and she picked up the box again, shoveling more food into her stomach.

            "What did he taste like?" Dorian asked, the knot in his stomach tightened as a blush crept across her face.

            "Like cinnamon and sex." She tossed the empty box into the trash and hopped onto the counter next to Dorian. "Gods above Dorian, he was terrifying." She leaned her head against his shoulder.

            "You like him." He accused, laying his own head on hers. Lottie remained silent, not sure what to say to that statement. "How long has it been?" His voice held a tint of amusement.

            "Since what?" She picked her head up and turned toward the caramel skinned man. She envied the color of his skin and the little beauty mark under his eye. It was such a shame he played for the other team.

            "Since you had a wild night of passion, your voice is practically dripping with desire." The amusement in Dorian spiked.

            "Leave it to you…" She mumbled as she hopped off the counter and left the main part of apartment. Dorian followed her further in the little home.

            "I think you need to get out more." His fingers trailed against the wall as they entered her room.

            "I get out every day. I own a _bar_ for crying out loud." Her shirt came off and she pulled on a loose t-shirt that dangled down to mid-thigh. "There isn't much else I can do." She lost the boots and pants as well, a delighted noise escaping her throat when air kissed her bare skin.

            "Just because you are around alcohol all day doesn't mean you get out love." He lifted an eyebrow as she brushed past him again. "You need a day off to unwind."

            "And do what?" She snorted as she flicked on the bathroom light, firmly shutting the door between her and the pushy mage.

            "Let loose," He spoke through the door. "You could do that tacky thing you like so much. With the paint?" Water greeted his ears and he stared at the wood, waiting for a reply. She yanked open the door and stepped out, heading for the kitchen again.

            "Are you going to go with me?" She challenged. "Mess your pretty manicure up?" The bottle was back in her hand and she drank directly from it this time.

            "Darling that is so crass." He pulled the bottle out of her grasp and poured some into her glass. She snatched it from his hand.

            "Sorry I have lost the touch of 'civilization'." She drank the liquid, feeling a little light headed. "I don't _know_ anyone Dorian. I am in hiding remember."

            He pursed his lips at her. "Leave it to me." Dorian gave her a hug, "Try not to overdo it love." He indicated the bottle, and with a wave of his hand a portal opened and he stepped through. "See you tomorrow."


	2. Magic Eater

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hate myself for this story. You will too, before the end.

Lottie's alarm blared in her ear. Her hand shot out, looking for the offending bastard and the damned snooze button. With grasping fingers she finally found it and the noise cut off, she drowned in the silence.

            She buried her head under the pillow again and groaned into the mattress. Her only pleasant thought was today was the last day of Spring Break.

            "Little bastards will be going home." She snarled, eye lids drifting closed again as she pulled the blanket up over her.

            She lay on the bed, floating in that space between wakefulness and sleep. The yearning for the black bliss slipping through her fingers as the snooze wore off and the alarm blared again. Lottie slapped the alarm with more force then necessary and silence reigned once more, sleep drifted closer.

            Lottie rolled and kicked the blankets off from her feet, equalizing her body temperature. She brushed against something. Sex and cinnamon greeted her and she pressed closer. Warmth engulfed her and she nuzzled into the warmth.

            "Mmm… So good." The words came unbidden; the sensation of skin on skin pulled one of her eyelids open. Gray-blue orbs met her gaze, a smug little smirk drifted across his face.

            Lottie screamed, magic threatening to burst from her control. She grabbed at the blankets and rolled away. She fell out of bed and slammed upright. A chuckle drifted through her mind, its masculine tone drenched with amusement.

            Quickly she erected a wall in her mind, the amusement already gone with the last traces of sleep. The damned alarm clock made her scream again when it went off.

 

Solas waited for his sister. A smile played across his face, a remnant of this morning. He had been unable to push thoughts of Scarlett from his mind, and his magic, unbidden, had done the rest.

            She had looked so peaceful, hair messy as she hid from the world and her alarm. She was a mystery, magic coursed through her but he couldn't find a record of her anywhere. He wanted, no _needed_ , to find out about her.

            Sera bounced into his car, her hair sticking up at odd angles. She slammed the door and he flicked a lazy look her way.

            "Sleep well?" He asked as he put the car into gear and glided smoothly onto the road. It was a long trek to the bar; he might as well be civil. Perhaps he could rebuild his relationship with his sister.

            "Like you care." She leaned her head against the window, he opened his mouth to ask her not to, teeth clicking closed when she dragged her tongue across the glass.

            "Must you?" His voice strained as he shifted into fifth gear and the engine roared. Sera didn't answer him, just stared out the window. "How did you meet Scarlett?" That caught her attention.

            "Who?" Solas sighed when her face pinched in confusion.

            "Scarlett, your boss?"

            "Lottie? Leave her alone." Sera growled, the confusion vanishing from her face. She glared darkly at her brother.

            "Are you her protector?" He asked as he weaved through the traffic at neck breaking speed. Sera didn't answer him, just stuck her tongue out. "Why is it so important that I leave her alone?"

            "Because she would want you to."

            "You are privy to her hidden desires?" The memory of this morning flitting through him, pulling the corners of his mouth up.

            Sera's hand flashed to the radio and music blared through the car.

 

Lottie was not expecting a small crowd when she entered the back lot of her bar. Dorian beamed at her as she silenced the purr beneath her and tossed the tarp over her bike.

            "What is this?" She was wary; this morning was full of surprises. She was not a girl for surprises.

            "I seem to recall a conversation last night. You needing a day off remember?" He gestured to the people gathered behind him. "I have come to your rescue love." Lottie watched as a smug smile crossed his face.

            She leaned to look past him and recognized one face; the others were strangers to her. Varric Tethras stepped around Dorian and gave her a half smile.

            "You look good Lottie." Varric called as he started down the steps. She met Varric halfway and gave him a brief hug. He was the only one not taller than her.

            "Varric, what's going on?" She watched as people milled around on the back porch of her bar, talking amongst themselves.

            "Sparkler called last night. Told me what happened, and I agree. You need a night off." He waved a couple people forward. "These are qualified people; I've had dealings with them in the past and would trust them with my life."

            "Varric I can't-" She started but was cut off when he raised a hand.

            "Lottie, I would like to introduce Rivaini and Daisy. Elf will be here later, and _he_ will be in charge." He flashed a look at the woman Rivaini. She had black curly hair, several piercings and wore a short skirt. She huffed at him.

            "I appreciate it but-" Dorian chose that moment to pop up.

            "So we are all agreed? Good." He ruffled Daisy's hair and grabbed Lottie's arm. "I'm sure they will take great care of your establishment."

            "Dorian-"

            "No thanks necessary, I know I've outdone myself." He preened at her, eyes flashing to the sleek car that pulled into the drive way. The memory of this morning flashed to her, panic lighting her stomach on fire. "Who is that love?"

            "That would be Sera's brother." Her voice dark as she all but hid behind Dorian. Varric came up and snatched the keys from her hand. "Hey-" Her hands flashed out to snag him but he moved away from her too quickly; Isabelle and Merrill followed him up the steps.

            Lottie ground out a sigh; she never did like it when the old gang got together. Too many wild cards in once place.

            Sera bound over to them. "What's going on, yeah?" She asked, her eyes flicking to Lottie and then to Dorian and the small crowd that was now entering the bar. "Did we get new help?"

            "A temporary arrangement, I assure you." Dorian patted Sera's hair into place. Lottie continued to hide, tugging on his arm. Sera waved his hand away with an irate look. Lottie had introduced them a while back and they got along famously.

            "I need to speak to you about something." Dorian looked down at Lottie, noting the panic in her tone. Lottie's gaze was locked on the car across the lot.

            "What would that be?" Dorian whispered. Sera had followed the others into the bar, she always loved crowds.

            "That would be Solas." Lottie hissed. "I've been trying to tell that something happened."

            "He's… darling what on earth were you thinking?" Dorian apprised the man that leaned against the car. It was still idling and the driver door was open, booming music spilled forth. "He is so…" He struggled for words. "Questionable."

            Lottie could feel his magic from across the lot, it felt like liquid lightening as it coiled around itself; little tendrils started flowing across the lot toward her and Dorian.

            "Shield please." Lottie asked, her tone hitting a new high. The taste of strawberries and lust coated her as Dorian obliged.

            "What happened." It wasn't a question, but a demand. Solas pushed off his car and started toward them, his magic slithered over the shield looking for a way in.

            Lottie quickly outlined the events of this morning and watched as Dorian's gaze darkened; one of his hands coming protectively around her waist.

            "Do you need to run?" Dorian asked, his mouth next to Lottie's ear as he whispered. She shook her head, unwilling to leave her life behind again. She was so tired of running. Too many times she dropped everything and ran when things got ugly. But here? People depended on her, like Sera. If she left what would happen to the young elf?

            "Not yet, we just need Sera's car out of the shop." Solas stood next to them now, and Dorian stood, but kept his hold on Lottie.

            "I don't believe we've been introduced." Solas held out his hand, looked at Lottie. Dorian took his hand and they shook. Lottie watched, thinking that Dorian was a brave, brave man.

            "Dorian Pavus." He took his hand back as soon as was socially acceptable. He resisted the urge to wipe it on his shirt.

            "Solas, a pleasure to meet you." His gaze left Lottie and moved to Dorian, "You are The Necromancer, yes?" Lottie felt Dorian stiffen next to her. Titles were not often used, most mages preferred not to use them all. Dorian had earned that particular name in the Dales.

            "Yes, that would be me." Dorian started nudging Lottie behind him, "Lottie, be a darling and go call Iron Bull."

            Lottie was glad to do something other than watch the two men attempt polite conversation. She all but ran up the stairs. Varric had wrangled the two women and they were going about opening up the bar.

            "If they're here, do I get the day off?" Sera's voice came from the front room. Lottie scrambled for the land line, cell forgotten in her panic. She quickly dialed Bull's number. It rang once before he answered.

            "Bull." His voice was curt.

            "It's Lottie, I'm not sure what the fuck is happening right now but Dorian is here-" Bull let a pleased little noise out, "And he asked me to call you."

            "Something wrong boss?" Lottie could tell by the roar of his engine he just kicked it into high gear.

            "Not sure yet, just… get here quickly." The line ended, the last thing she heard was the engine red lining and someone screaming obscenities in the background. Lottie placed the phone back in the cradle, wondering how the morning had gone to shit. All she wanted was to open her bar and possibly shoot someone with Reason.

            "Want to talk about it?" Varric's voice interrupted her thoughts, Lottie jumped a little.

            "My life is circling the shitter." She growled, turning to Varric. "Sera's brother is here, he's outback. Dorian _requested_ that I call Bull." Too many of her old pack were gathered, she should have known things would get dicey.

            "Sera has a brother?" The interest in his tone sent a warning through Lottie. "Outback you say?" He walked through the door.

            "Do I get the day off?" Sera popped up next to Lottie, a smile plastered to her face. "Cause I could use a day off."

            "Sure," Lottie said, distracted as the roar of Bull's charger met her ears. "Sure Sera. Go wild." At this point Lottie wasn't convinced that her bar was going to live through the day, much less open.

            Yelling ensued, loud enough that the girls could hear the angry tones but not the words. They cast a look at each other and bolted for the door; each shoving the other in attempt to scramble outside. Hair was pulled and feet were tripped. Lottie swore the taller girl tried to _bite_ her.

            "Bull that is unnecessary." Dorian's voice shot out, Lottie tossed an elbow at Sera. Sera ducked it but it cost her the lead. Lottie burst through the door and her jaw dropped. Dorian had ahold of Bull's arm and was trying to tug him away from Solas.

            There was a cracked barrier around Sera's brother; a bat lay not far away on the ground. His face was cold and calculating. His hand came up and Lottie screamed as she saw a spell form on his lips.

            The world slowed as Lottie ran, she warped the world around her bringing the distance closer as she stepped from one point to another. She saw Bull lash out again and the barrier around Solas fell. Sera's scream barely registered as Lottie appeared between the three men. Dorian's hand closed around her arm and he tried to move her out of the spell's path.

            Lottie grabbed Solas's hand as he threw it forward, lightening sparked up her arm and her heart pounded at the contact. The spell started its path toward the two men. As she touched it the nature of the spell changed, it wound its way up her arm; dimly she was aware of the crackle as it spread across her hand. Dorian still tugged on her arm, and large hands encircled her waist lifting her off the ground.

            She warped the world once more and drank the mana from the spell. It fizzled and with was a slight pop it ceased to exist.

            Time resumed its normal speed as Dorian screamed at her and Bull apologized profusely. Horror shook her to her core. She was not supposed to use that magic ever. She had vowed never again to use that magic; it would be too easy for the wrong people to connect her to her past. And she wasn't sure she was ready for them to find her.

            Sera had reached her brother and was screaming at him. Her voice was shrill as she gestured violently to Lottie and the two men. She spoke so quickly that Lottie couldn't register the words as they left her mouth.

            Bull set Lottie on her feet, planting himself firmly between her and the others.

            "Bull its fine," Lottie mumbled as she shoved at his massive chest. He didn't move, his chest heaving in anger. "What the hell happened?"

            "Do you know who he is?" Bull's tone was sharp, but quiet. He didn't look over his shoulder, but all of his attention was on the mage across the lot.

            "Lottie said he is Sera's brother." Dorian explained as he brushed gravel from Lottie's pants.

            "Boss, do you know who he is?" He directed the question at Lottie, watching as she smacked away Dorian's hands.

            "His name is Solas—Stop!" The last bit was directed at Dorian, he was still plucking rocks from her. "Stop." She stepped out of reach. "Anyone want to explain why this escalated?"

            "Boss, that man is Fen'Harel." Lottie stiffened at his words.

            "Shit."

 

Solas was mortified. One minute he was exchanging thinly veiled threats with The Necromancer, the next a giant hulking man was swing a bat at him. The world disappeared as he threw up a shield and allowed a spell to form on his fingertips.

            He blinked and Scarlett stood between him and the giant. Her hand closed around his, and he _tried_ to pull the spell back, but it was too late. He felt as she warped his magic, as it spread up her arm, then nothing.

            The spell ceased to exist.

            Sera screamed at him, but he wasn't listening. His mind was on the woman across the lot. He watched them under hooded lids; the big man blocked her from his gaze. She was an enigma, and Solas so loved puzzles.

            "Are you listening?" His sister's voice broke him from his thought.

            "I apologize Sera." He gave his sister his full attention.

            "You are such a nutter! You bag of arse chips! Is throwing magic at her your way of leaving her alone?" She shoved at his chest, Solas allowed himself to stumble back.

            His gaze was drawn once more to the three across the lot. Scarlett ran her hands through her hair as the other two walked with a purpose toward the bar. They stopped next to a dwarf with blond hair. Words were exchanged and he nodded as he started down the stairs toward Scarlett.

            She was moving toward Solas and the raging little sibling.

            "Sera, do you mind if we continue this later?" He asked, cutting of her tirade. Scarlett had reached them and placed a gentle hand on Sera's arm. Solas watched in wonder as the fight died out of his little sisters eyes and she moved toward the bar, grumbling under her breath as she went.

            "I would like to offer sincere apologies on behalf of my associates." Her tone was polite, but Solas could see the emotions raging under that thin façade. Her fingers trembled slightly, and when she noticed she clenched them into fists.

            "Apology accepted." His magic stretched toward her, trying to puzzle its way into her mind. The barrier she erected was strong, and he read nothing other than the panic that crossed her face.

            Scarlett nodded and stepped away from him, the man who had joined her walking behind her, a silent shadow.

            Solas pulled out his phone, finding the person he wished to contact he sent a simple message.

            _I need you to look into something for me. A woman named Scarlett; she owns a bar on main and 2 nd in Haven_.

            He hit send and knew that the woman would be back to him within the day. Tucking the phone away he walked toward the bar, his life was much more interesting now.

 

Lottie pulled Dorian, Bull, and Varric up the stairs. Orders were given to open as planned while Lottie tried to work damage control on her life. She liked her little bar and the little town. Perhaps if she wished hard enough Sera's brother would disappear and she could continue with her life.

            "You are sure Bull?" She asked once they reached the second floor and she secured the door. He nodded at her.

            "Yeah, boss. Ran into him a few years ago, managed to stick to the shadows and get out before things got ugly." He ran a hand over his face, eyes tired.

            "Want to clue me in Tiny?" Varric asked, leaning his body against the door. Dorian answered for him.

            "It seems out esteemed Scarlett has attracted the attention of the magical elite." Lottie threw him a look; she didn't like her full name. Hadn't used it since before she ran, and even then she went by her mage title mostly, that in and of itself declared how much she hated her name.

            "Chuckles out there? He's magical elite? How? Buttercup doesn't have an ounce of magic in her." Varric looked through the door like he could see the siblings.

            "Doesn't matter what she does or doesn't have Varric. The point is boss may need to run again."

            "I am tired of running, it's been years. Maybe they stopped looking?" Her words sounded stupid even to her. "Besides, between the four of us we can take Fen'Harel down." She walked over to her desk and pulled out a pair of gloves. Her hands traced the runes lovingly before she tucked them into her waist band.

            "I'm sorry… you said Fen'Harel? Buttercup's brother is the Dread Wolf?" Varric choked on the words. "I'm sorry Lottie, but you need to skip town tonight." The other two men nodded at her.

            "No," She turned and looked at them, varying emotions flooded the room. Anger was prevalent among them. "Think about it for a second okay? His reputation is one of chaotic neutrality at best. Worst? He doesn't get along with his brethren all that well. And if I up and disappear after that little display it's going to shoot off alarm bells and possibly ignite another March to find me." She shook her head, "No, it is best if I stay and try to work damage control."

            "What if Cory-" Lottie silenced Bull with a glare.

            "He dead." She looked at the three men that crowded her little office. Each of them nodded, "Good. Now, let's get down stairs. I believe I am taking the day off."

            Varric and Lottie made their way down stairs. Lottie couldn't help but notice that Dorian was smug as they exited the room. She sighed, if she hadn't freaked out last night, perhaps her world would still be safe.

            Rivaini was leaning over the bar, curling a finger in her hair as she spoke to Solas. Well… it was more like she talked _at_ him because he wasn't paying her the slightest bit of attention.

            Lottie's heart beat in her throat as she watched Solas gaze at her, his magic gliding over her and leaving the taste of cinnamon at the back of her tongue.

            "Varric if you would be so kind as to provide instructions, I am going to find out what Dorian has planned for today." She remembered he mentioned tacky and paint last night. She hoped desperately it was paintball because she really needed to shoot something right now.

            Sera moved over to Lottie and winced when she made eye contact. "He won't leave." Her head tilted toward her brother.

            "I kind of figured that out when I saw him sitting in the bar Sera." She patted the woman's arm. "Its fine, don't worry. He's probably just worried about the company you keep. I know I would after what happened this morning."

            "It was probably his fault," Sera leaned in and continued in a loud whisper. "He doesn't get along with most people." Solas coughed into his hand and Lottie was sure he heard. "So what are we doing today, yeah?"

            Dorian had joined them at last, his face was slightly flushed and his hair was a little too messy for her uptight friend.

            "Enjoy yourself?" Lottie laughed as Iron Bull walked down the stairs; he winked at them and continued past the bar to open the front door. "Bull is staying here?" Dorian cleared his throat and started to nod.

            "No need Sparkler," Varric slid next to them. "Elf just phoned, he is five minutes out. He is going to be bouncer tonight while Rivaini and Daisy work the bar." Relief flooded through Lottie, nothing like having a massive Qunari tucked in your back pocket if shit hit the fan again.

            "Good," she turned to Dorian. "So, what's the plan?"

            "Paintball." Dorian muttered, his tone mortified. "I can't believe I just said that." Lottie beamed at him.

            "Thank the Gods, I need to shoot something." Her hands found their way into her hair and she bound it back in a tight bun. "Who all is coming?" Sera slammed into her, arm around her neck.

            "ME!" She screamed into Lottie's ear. Lottie winced and shoved Sera off of her.

            "Do you even know what we are doing?"

            "Nope, but nuthin better to do right?" She tossed a piece of gum into her mouth and started blowing bubbles. Dorian laughed at her, but pointed to Varric and apparently Iron Bull.

            "Just the five of us then?" Someone cleared their throat, and Sera winced.

            "I did tell you he won't leave right?" Lottie sighed and ran a hand over her face. With a fake smile she turned, trying to keep the twitch out of her eye and the blush of her face.

            "Would you like to join us Solas?" _At least six will even out the teams_. She thought when he nodded at her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I should probably add that there is a lot of fluff to this story. Plot is a thing, I swear. I live and breathe plot, but I'm working on banter and fluff. 
> 
> Hope you enjoyed!


	3. Cutting Loose

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Paint ball is fun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So because I am a monster and I finished the chapter you all are going to hate me for I am posting everything I have. Please take note of the archive warnings. There will be fluff, and feels, and hopefully funny times ahead.

Solas gazed at the empty lot. His car was gone. He heard snickering behind him, and he let out a frustrated growl. How could he have forgotten that he left the keys in the ignition and the door wide open?

            He sent a quick message to Cole; the kid was a savant when it came to computers. He could track his car and have it back before tonight.

            "Boss, you know my car only seats four, right?" The giant a man spoke. Solas felt as her magic jumped, it twisted like silk as it snapped at the air.

            "Someone can ride with me." Her voice was quiet. "Unless Solas would like to report his car stolen?"

            "Unnecessary, my people are already looking into it." He spun and walked back to the little group. He was aware that no one desired his presence, but that had never stopped him before. His gaze lingered on Scarlett; loose tendrils of red hair framed her face and hid those green eyes from his.

            "Right, well I hope they can get your car back for you." She turned to look at the giant; he still did not know his name. "So, who is riding with Bull?"

            Bull looked at Dorian and tossed him a wink. It soothed something inside Solas, the men had been pawing at Scarlett for most of the morning and it was comforting to know that their interests did not lie with women.

            His sister became fidgety. "I ain't gettin on that death trap." She shuddered and stepped closer to Bull. Solas turned and watched the blond man shake his head at him.

            "Oh come on Varric, it wasn't that bad." She pleaded at him. Curiosity flooded him, wondering what had taken place.

            "You didn't fly through someone's windshield." He shot back as he started toward Bull's car. She sighed and turned to Solas.

            "Up for a ride?" She tossed her helmet at him and strode toward her bike. He tilted his head and watched her walk away, wondering what type of bike she rode, fearing slightly for his life.

            Lottie's hands grasped the edges of the tarp and with a flick of her wrist displayed her bike. It was electric blue, and looked like it was built for speed instead of comfort. Satisfaction spiked through him.

            She crammed a helmet onto her head; it matched the bikes color whereas his was just a standard black. Solas slid the helmet on and walked toward her. Surprise flowed through him when he clearly heard her voice over the roar of the motorcycle.

            "Promise I'll be gentle." Her voice came from inside the helmet, right next to his ear. She patted the seat behind her and he climbed on. Lottie revved the bike and the back tire spun, he almost fell off as she whipped them in a tight circle. Quickly he wrapped his arms around her and held on as she sped off, kicking up gravel the whole way.

 

"Was it necessary to cut every person off?" Solas asked, barely managing to stay on his feet. Sera thought him a bad driver, but he had nothing on the red haired vixen before him.

            "Bull started it." She laughed as she slid off her bike. Solas wasn't sure that Bull almost running them over qualified as 'started it'.

            "Where are we anyway?" He looked around; this did not look like the place one played paint ball.

            "My place." She started up a set of stairs, keys in one hand, phone in the other. Solas watched as she typed out a quick message then shoved it in her back pocket. Lottie shifted her gaze to him. "You coming or what?" She left the door open as she walked inside.

            With a lifted eyebrow he climbed the stairs. When he entered she was nowhere to be found. He looked around at the mismatched furniture; comfort radiated from every corner. A book shelf tucked in one corner. He recognized several titles and bindings.

            He closed the door behind him and started toward the shelf, the desire to understand Scarlett almost overwhelming. A phone ringing drew his attention away from the shelf, her voice filtered to him through the walls; he walked closer to the sound.

            "You don't get to grumble at my life choices." She grew quiet. "I am not paintballing in these boots Dorian." He heard something crash and he walked closer to the closed door. "You chose to ride with him! What else was I supposed to do? Leave him there!" Something thumped into the door and Solas leaned away as it rattled. "It's fine… I said its _fine_."

            Solas heard a few more angry words and the door flew open. Lottie slammed into him; he had not been prepared for her to exit then. He could feel his ears turning red. His hands shot out to steady her, they closed firmly around her shoulders and he felt her magic spike.

            "Sorry, you disappeared." She was no longer in tight jeans and high heeled boots. She now wore tights that cut off just above her knee and tennis shoes. "I feel a little over dressed." Lottie stepped past him.

            "No problem," Another door closed and he stood in the hallway, completely lost and not sure what to do.

            Her phone rang through the door; he heard another string of curses ending in ' _not now_ ' and the ringing stopped.

            "Your friends seem a little over protective." He leaned away from the door, and it opened seconds later. She appeared, hair tightly braided, though a few strands escaped their bonds and hung around her face.

            "Yeah, apparently not enough though." She pushed him down the hallway, "Come on, we're running late." The little woman shoved him toward the door and he looked around bemused.

            "They did not appreciate you bringing me here?" He questioned, stopping just shy of the door.

            "They don't get a decision in the men I bring home." She grabbed a leather jacket off a hook nestled behind the door. 

            "You bring many men home?" Scarlett's eyes flashed to him and her magic jumped again. The corner of his mouth lifted slightly as sin and chocolate slid over him.

            "The men I bring home don't get to ask questions." She shot at him and the other side of his mouth lifted. He allowed her to usher him from her house, she slammed and locked the door behind them.

 

"Alright!" Lottie called out, "We play by our standard rules, two teams of three, when a person gets hit seven times by the other team they are out. Now, because we have a guest here," her eyes darted to Solas and her stomach fluttered a little, "he gets to be a captain." Groans could be heard from the crowd. "None of that, or I'll stick you on his team."

            Solas coughed slightly and she smiled, bumping him with her hip.

            "Who is the other captain?" Varric asked, eyes watching the exchange between Lottie and Solas. Lottie saw him poke Dorian discreetly and point at her. She suppressed the coming blush. _Damage control_ , she reminded herself.

            "Good question. Nose goes." She looked around, "Ready?" Three of them screamed nose goes and touched their index finger to their respective noses. Dorian looked baffled, as his gaze moved between the others. Quickly he put his finger on his nose and Lottie laughed. "Nice try Dorian. Sera is the other captain."

            Sera bounced in circles, pleased with herself. Iron Bull gave a grunt and the group broke up. Lottie dragged Dorian toward Iron Bull and Varric.

            "Call it in the air." Bull hollered as he threw a coin up. Sera screamed ' _tails!_ '. The coin bounced to the floor and everyone leaned in to look at it, waiting in anticipation as it spun.

            "Heads." Dorian called out as the coin spun to a stop.

            "Right then, Solas gets to pick first." Lottie's gaze slid to the quiet man before her. He lifted an eyebrow.

            "Scarlett." And she had seen it coming. She picked up her gun and stepped next to him, irritation shooting through her.

            "It's Lottie." Her tone almost a growl as she stopped next to him. His magic wound over her skin and she resisted the urge to shudder under it. His gaze turned her insides to liquid. His magic crackled with the ferocity of lightening. She gave a little extra oomph to her glare as she looked at him, trying desperately not to allow her feelings to show.

            "Iron Bull!" Sera shouted, jumping in place. Lottie didn't blame her; he was extremely good at these games. And extremely competitive. She sighed, chances of winning were dwindling.

            "What is his name?" Solas whispered as he pointed, Lottie followed his gaze.

            "Varric?" When he nodded at her she spoke up. "Varric, you're with us." Perhaps not all was lost. Varric had been a crack shot back in the day, and useful in a pinch.

            Dorian sighed, resigned to his fate as he moved toward Sera and Bull. When he got close enough Bull wrapped an arm around him.

            "It's okay, I'll protect you." Bull's voice was a whisper, and Dorian shoved at him; not that he didn't like the sentiment. Bull turned his attention to Lottie, "No magic," he growled at her.

            Lottie lifted her middle finger and blew him a kiss. "Don't be jealous." She could feel Solas's gaze on her, and watched as Bull's slid toward the other man; anticipation wound its way through her. This should be interesting.

 

 

Solas yanked his head back, already he had been hit by three of the unpleasant little balls; orange splatters could be found across his back, and one in the middle of his chest. He was surprised by how much they stung.

            He watched in fascination as Lottie and Varric rolled and wove between the different obstacles, seeming to duck at the last possible moment. Varric had been hit once, the evidence displayed on his shoulder.

            Scarlett was free of any paint. His eyes widened as she rolled over to him, the other team peppered the ground behind her, unable to touch her.

            "How are you holding up?" A grin was plastered across her face, she was _actually_ enjoying this.

            "This is what you call fun?" He watched as she peaked over the wall, his curiosity drove him and he looked too.

            Something whizzed through the air and paint splattered just below their faces, splattering their goggles with the hideous color.

            "You'll have to do better than that!" Lottie yelled, laughter filling her voice. They had taken cover behind the wall again. "Listen, we need to get Bull out of the game. Up for a little distraction?"

            "Will I be performing the role of the bait?" He asked, ducking down a little more as another projectile hit their cover.

            "That will be my job." His eyebrows rose in surprise. "Bull is in the left back corner, on the second landing. He has us all but pinned down." Her head jerked as Sera screamed profanities, she laughed and shot thumbs up at Varric.

            "What do you want me to do?" His tone was cautious, he had no desire to be hit by the evil little paint filled plastic balls more than necessary.

            "Take him down." She winked at him and ran, gun tucked to her shoulder. A yelp could be heard across the field as she fired their purple paint at the others. With a resigned sigh Solas leaned his gun against the top of the wall and sighted down the barrel.

            Iron Bull was exactly where she said he would be. Solas squeezed the trigger; his gun let loose a little _plat_ noise as the first of several paint balls flew from the end of his borrowed gun. Purple splayed across the large man's chest and Solas surprised himself when a grin spread across his face.

            He hit him once more before orange balls came screaming in his direction. He ducked down, but not before he was hit with another one. It had connected with his collar bone, the paint splatter covering part of his face and most of his neck.

            Varric appeared by his side, startling Solas slightly.

            "Not bad Chuckles." He leaned out from cover and took a shot. Solas heard an unfamiliar yelp.

            "Chuckles?"

            "Keep your ass behind the cover Sparkler!" Varric taunted, distant words of the unpleasant variety could be heard in return. Varric returned his attention to Solas. "Lottie got nailed pretty hard, but you got Bull twice and I got him three times. I bet he is about to burst right now."

            The small man leaned out and the yelp came again.

            "He makes it to easy." Varric laughed. "Let's make this interesting shall we?"

            Solas watched the delight that showed through Varric's eyes, and knowing better, asked "Interesting how?"

            "Whoever takes Bull down gets to ask the other a question, and the other has to answer honestly." Varric smiled at the hesitancy written on the elf's face. "Well Chuckles?'

            "Limits to the question?"

            "Absolutely none." And just then Varric could have cussed a blue streak at the feral grin that split the others face.

            "Deal."

            Well, shit.

 

Lottie grimaced; one of three of them had landed a shot to the side of her neck. Her hair was sticky with paint and it would take forever to wash it out. And it was orange of all colors.

            She looked around for the others on her team, the battlefield had grown quiet and if the past was any indication that was not a good thing. She risked a glance, her eyes darting quickly across the other side; Sera was running along the railing of the second story, Bull was still tucked in his corner and Dorian wasn't even trying anymore.

            Lottie was impressed with Dorian's choice though. This place had an amazing set up. The walls were multicolored and spaced far enough apart for easy maneuvering. The second story was a new addition. It wasn't anything spectacular but it added a wonderful view that made it difficult for those on the ground to move.

            Varric had been up there, but he left to talk to Solas. She leaned forward and watched as them, their heads tucked together; their lips moved but she couldn't hear anything. Lottie just hopped they had a killer strategy or this game was in the toilet.

            She had four other paintball marks across her body, making a total of five. Just two more well placed shots and she was out of the game.

            "Aw come on boss!" Bull shouted. He must have found her. _Shit_ … She looked around for anything she could use. "Show me that red hair!"

            She whistled causing Varric's head to swivel in her direction. "Remember that time in the Hissing Wastes?"

            Varric's laughter floated to her, "You sure?" She nodded and watched as he leaned back to Solas and filled him in; both of them were laughing now. She honestly didn't see how it was funny, but then again she had the scars not them.

            Lottie laid her gun on the ground, filling her pockets with ammo. She waited, adrenaline pumping through her system. She counted her heartbeats, willing it to steady; hoping that Varric could get the pitches right and that she remembered them correctly. So many variables, little things could go wrong.

            At least her life wasn't on the line this time.

            She leaned forward again; both of the men were no longer there. Her muscles were tense, waiting for the signal; ears alert. She picked up the faint sounds of the other team shooting as the men moved into position.

            Varric whistled, high pitched. That was it.

            Lottie exploded into action, sliding around her cover. Bull roared in pleasure as he aimed at her; still she ran, head tucked down, trusting Varric to guide her through the coming onslaught.

            Another whistle came, this one more complex. It started high pitched then dropped an octave with a little trill on the end.

            She spun right, orange exploded on the ground behind her. A smile slid across her face as she righted herself and continued her sprint through no man's land.

            Varric started whistling again but the call came too late, Sera scored a shot against her calf. As the plastic ball burst on her leg it shot pain up into her knee. She faltered; Varric's whistle changed and she tucked and rolled.

            Slamming behind cover she laughed, feeling very much alive. Lottie searched for her guide, her chest heaving. The thought that she was getting too old for this flitting through her head.

            She found Varric, half hidden in the shadows under a balcony. He pointed before he vanished.

            Movement to her left caught her attention, her hand shot into her pocket. Dorian walked off the field, covered in purple paint. He tapped a cigarette out of a pack and lit it with a thought. Solas had taken the first down.

            Her target was Sera, and Varric had already given her the location. She just needed to be faster than Bull, which would be a miracle on her best day.

            Another whistle came and she released her coiled muscles as she leapt over her cover. Solas caused a ruckus, drawing their attention as she scurried toward the balcony; climbing onto a nearby box she jumped hands closing on the railing. She followed through and landed behind Sera.

            The younger woman whipped around, but the paint balls were already flying through the air. They splattered against her chest. Sera paused to count them, Lottie followed counting along.

            _Six?_ _Shit!_ Sera smiled at her and lifted her gun, plugging her in her stomach. Lottie growled but held up her hands, they were clenched in fists except for one finger.

            Varric struck, snipping Sera in the shoulder. Laughter burst from between Lottie's lips, Sera shot her in the knee cap.

            "Hey!" Lottie yelled, Bull laughed from his corner. Sera when to open her mouth, her eyes catching sight of Solas sneaking up from his right.

            Lottie broke several plastic balls over her head, dying her hair purple. The young woman let out a gasp instead of the warning she wanted to. Bull saw the exchange and rolled onto his back, gun coming up as he clenched his muscles and sat up. He shot Solas twice in the stomach, but he completely forgot about Varric.

            Lottie heard the impact of several shots, the grouping was beautiful. A victorious V on his back; it was overkill by a little bit.

            Bull groaned and lay back on the ground, a dark chuckle spilling from his lips. "I wasn't in the Hissing Wastes with you." He commented, "But I know that move."

            "It was one I used a lot." Lottie walked over to him and held out a hand. "Trust is the key." Bull gripped her hand and she braced herself as he pulled against her and fluidly gained his feet.

            "I'm surprised Solas picked up on it so quickly." Was that admiration Lottie heard in his voice?

            "I had an excellent tutor." Varric joined the rest of them; he clapped Solas on the shoulder at his words.

            "Well, it was Lavellan's plan."

 

Lottie tossed the bottle cap onto the counter and titled the beer back; her other hand holding one out to Solas.

            They had all gone back to the bar; hiding out in the back room. The others had disappeared upstairs to fight over the shower. Varric was the only one who hadn't come, saying that he needed to get back to organize something or other. Lottie had a bad feeling about that. He and Dorian had shared a _look_.

            "You enjoyed yourself today." Lottie nodded as she swallowed the pungent drink. She never much cared for beer.

            "I'm more surprised that you did." Solas lifted an eyebrow at her.

            "You know so much about my interests?" He cracked open his beer and took a drink, the skin around his nose crinkled in distaste. "You like this?"

            "Nope," Lottie took another drink. "And Sera told me stories about her childhood." Her leg shot out and pulled a chair toward her, a sigh escaping her lips as she took a seat.

            "Then why do you drink it?" Lottie laughed, shaking her head at his question.

            "Why does anyone drink?" Solas leaned against the counter, her eyes roamed his body. He was all lean lines and muscle. She had watched him during paintball. He moved with the grace of a predator, and had the keen intelligence to go along with it. He looked good in paint though.

            She had not expected this when Sera told her yesterday her brother was picking her up. Lottie had not been expecting to enjoy having him around this much, considering the sparse stories Sera had shared.

            Her magic unthinkingly stretched out and mingled with his; she yanked it back a second too late. Solas pinned her with his gaze, his magic grew bold and caressed her skin. She tilted her head back, closed her eyes and debated on walking out the door.

            It had been so long since she allowed herself any sort of temptation. So when it popped up now, it was harder to say no then she expected. She suppressed a moan, rolling her head on her neck. When she opened her eyes she stood and walked to him.

            "Lottie!" Dorian called down the stairs, his head popping around the corner. "Lottie, my love, could you come here for a second?"

            She stood before him, not quite able to meet his gaze. Wondering if things were different where this could lead. Dorian was right, she liked him.

            Lottie felt the desire in his magic; it crackled and popped against her skin. She was flattered, he knew nothing about her, yet here he stood. She loved every second, every iota of attention he gave her. _He is Fen'Harel_ , she reminded herself. With a sigh she stepped from him.

            Dorian disappeared up the stairs; his confidence in her was astounding.

            "Let me know if you need a ride home." She called out as she too disappeared up the stairs.


	4. Back From the Dead

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Solas has surprise visitors

"Does she know?" Dorian growled as he pointed at Sera. He ran his hand through his hair, water clung to his fingers and he flicked it at Lottie.

            "So subtle," Lottie patted his arm as she passed him. "No, she doesn't know. I'm in _hiding_ remember? I don't go around spouting off who I am to everyone."

            "Really? I seem to recall you being chummy with the Wolf downstairs." He hissed as he followed her deeper.

            "He doesn't know anything." Lottie said calmly as she walked into the bathroom, Dorian followed her. "Get the door?"

            "How do you know? He comes from a prestigious family! He could know everything. They could be bearing down on you at this moment." The door clicked shut.

            Lottie stepped out of her clothes, leaving them where they lie. "Do you really think he would be acting this way if he knew who I was?" She turned on the shower and stepped inside, closing the curtain behind her.

            "Vivienne called. He's looking into you." That gave Lottie pause; she held her head under the water, letting it run over her hair and down her skin. Orange puddled at her feet as she watched the water circle the drain before disappearing.

            "And?" She prompted, her heart spiked. This was more problematic that she had predicted.

            "We are just lucky he contacted her for the information." She heard the toilet lid click against porcelain and Dorian sigh, his shadow was sitting now. "What are you going to do?"

            "Have her feed him some bullshit story." She scrubbed the paint from her.

            "Wouldn't it be easier to run?" Dorian's voice was strained. She winced, knowing that yes, it would be easier. But she didn't want to; she was so tired of running.

            "It would."

            "I'm so glad you changed your mind. I'll get in touch with Varric, he'll get everything together. We'll be gone by tomorrow." She watched Dorian stand and walk toward the door.

            "Aren't you weary of following me? How many times have you three clean up my messes and yanked my stupid ass out of a tight spot?"

            "Do you doubt my loyalty?" His tone was acid as he walked back and ripped the curtain open. "I saw you stand for what is right."

            "I don't doubt you." She hissed at him. "I almost died killing him. All of you patched me up and hid me away from the damned Evanuris. Their greed wanting me for my magic, their wrath wanting me for our vigilante justice."

            Dorian stared down at her, anger blazing in his eyes. "I glad that you remember! One of them is down stairs." His movements were jerky as he pointed through the floor. "I think you just miss the danger, the blood; being a leader against evil at the tender age of nineteen." His words were like a slap to the face. She glared up at him.

            "How are you any different? You followed me into battle, when we parted you would tell me not to kill anyone without you. You miss the sex appeal and the intrigue." She ripped a clean towel around her.

            "My my… aren't we a pair?" He asked, his tone taunting. He reached out his hand, Lottie slapped it down. Hurt wound its way through Dorian.

            She immediately regretted her actions and placed a hand on his chest. Dorian had given everything up, tried to go into hiding with her. His family would not allow it. They paid his debts, bought off officials and had his name struck from the records.

            He should be in Val Royeaux right now, in his role as ambassador.

            "That we are." Lottie laid her head upon his chest and wrapped a hand around his waist. "I can't allow you to ruin everything for me again though."

            "What was it you said to me… oh yes, 'you don't get to grumble at my life choices'?" Lottie laughed into his chest as he wrapped his arms around her. "So, are we running?"

            "I'm so tired Dorian." Lottie stepped away, his hand fell to his side. The look on his face was resigned. "I don't want to run anymore."

            "I guess we're just lucky you hid this long." He kissed her wet tresses. "We'll find a way to fix this. Maybe just bed him? The men in camp seemed loyal to a fault."

            Lottie punched his shoulder. "I never slept with any of them."

            "Not even the dark skinned man from Antiva?" Lottie flushed at his words. "He had such a clever tongue."

            "No comment." She shot back as she leaned past him and opened the door. "I would like to finish my shower now."

 

Solas's phone rang, he answered without even looking at the screen.

            "Solas," a woman spoke, the line was slightly garbled. He looked at the screen, two bars. "I'm surprised you contacted me over a woman. Is she not falling for your charm?"

            "Madame de Fer, a pleasure as always. Have you found out anything?" He stepped out of the back room of the bar, sure that he did not want Scarlett's companions to over hear his conversation.

            "There isn't a lot of information on her darling. Parents died when she was six, she moved through foster homes until she came of age. She pays her taxes, has a few speeding tickets. She's rather dull."

            Solas knew that wasn't right, Scarlett had moved like she had combat experience. All of them moved together like they had years of practice with each other. What had happened in the Hissing Wastes? She had implicit trust in Varric, yes it was a game, but why would they use something like that in that desert? And Bull was more than enough to confuse Solas on his own.

Her friends bounced from being edgy to civility so quickly that it hurt his head. They deferred to her like she was in charge, or had been at one point. No, she wasn't just some orphan who owned a bar. There was something more to her.

            "Thank you Vivienne, I appreciate you looking into this for me." He ended the call, and saw he had a missed message from Cole.

            He sighed as he read the message. Cole had managed to locate his car, or rather the pieces of it. Who knew a little town like Haven had a chop shop?

            Solas walked back into the bar, Scarlett and her friends were huddled around each other. He heard whispers, catching only snatches of the conversation. His eyes widened at what he heard.

            "…run again..."

            "…bad idea…"

            "…out…"

            Scarlett noticed him and ended the conversation with a wave of her hand. Her hair was wet and devoid of paint, and she had located a spare change of clothes somewhere.

            "I apologize for the interruption. It seems I may be in need of that ride you mentioned." Solas address Scarlett, his eyes flicked to Bull and his darkening gaze.

            "Is that wise boss?" Bull asked, he raised a hand like he was going to stop Scarlett's advance toward Solas. "Can't you just call for a ride?"

            "And who would I call?" He asked as Scarlett stopped next to him.

            "You're rich; I bet you could think of someone." Dorian laid a hand on his shoulder and drew the larger man's gaze.

            "It's okay Bull, I offered earlier. It makes more sense for me to take him instead of making him wait for his people to show up." Scarlett's back was to Solas, but he was sure she shot him some sort of look because the fight died out of Bull and he turned away from them, going into the main part of the bar.

            "Just make sure you return soon Lottie, I would hate for you to miss the rest of my plans." Dorian winked at Scarlett before he followed Bull.

            Scarlett turned to him, she looked drained. Solas wondered what had happened to the woman who had shared a beer with him just hours ago. Something had changed, and it drove him mad that he wasn't aware of what was going on.

            "Your companions are interesting." He commented as he followed her out the door, grabbing his borrowed helmet as he walked by.

            She let out a delicate snort. "Interesting isn't the word I would use to describe them. Asinine at time, or perhaps pushy. But they are my asinine pushy people."

            Solas watched as she slid on her leather jacket, his eyes landing on a little scar just under her collar bone. He arched an eyebrow at that.

            Pieces started clicking together, a theory forming in the back of his mind. A cult rose to power about a decade ago, chaos threatened to engulf the world. People banded together and shut it down before disappearing back into the world. Among them were mages who flouted the system.

            "Ready?" She asked as she zipped up her jacket and slid her helmet on.

            The bike roared to life under them and she sped off.

 

Lottie was almost sad to see Solas go. Yes it had only been two days since she met him, but she felt something in the snap of his magic, and she knew that there was something unspoken between them.

            This morning seemed so far away. Was it really just eight short hours ago that she learned he was Fen'Harel? The memory of him in her dream floated to her and that seemed like it happened last week, not this morning.

            The ride was silent, which was okay with her. She hardly knew the man that sat behind her, clutching to her waist for dear life.

            Lottie rapidly approached a car, looking down at the speedometer she saw she was doing 90 down the road. With a small lean and a little bob she wove around the car, his hands tightened and she heard a little gasp.

            She resisted the urge to laugh, but eased off the gas. They were just about there anyway. He lived outside of town, tucked away up in the mountains. She had never been this way before, and slowed down a little more.

            "You'll have to let me know when we get close." She spoke, knowing that he would hear her through the speaker in his helmet. "You really live up here? It must get lonely."

            He chuckled in her ear. "Yes, but I prefer it. I do not like the injustice of the world. People are happy enough to leave me alone."

            "Injustice of the world?" He sounded like she had when she was younger.

            "I believe that mages should be free, instead of treated like cattle. The chipping process… it is distasteful. We are people and deserve to be treated as such." Shock flooded through her, the magical elite presided over the mages with no status. That he felt that way was astounding.

            Silence grew between them; she relaxed slightly as they coasted. He provided her with directions the closer they got to his home.

            Lottie turned off the main road and navigated the switch backs up the mountain. The air around them started growing chilly; the sun was setting casting a beautiful purple haze across the horizon.

            The bike crept along, encouraged by her hands. Three SUVs were parked outside his house; engines idling.

            Solas growled and jumped from her bike the instant it stopped, the helmet clattering to the ground as he started forward.

            Lottie killed the engine and took off her own.

            "I'm guessing you weren't expecting company?" She asked as she pulled the gloves from her waist band and slid them onto her hands. The runes flashed to life as soon as they touched her skin.

            He didn't respond as he started up his stairs.

            Lottie took in his home, it was smaller than she had expected. It was two stories, the second floor had large windows starting at the base and stretching to the roof. Silhouettes could be seen moving around. They weren't being gentle with the items they handled.

            A crash came from within and Solas started running. Lottie skipped once before she picked up her speed and followed him into the house.

            When she hit the entry way Solas was already running up the stairs. The first floor was wrecked from what she could see of it; books strewn across the floor, pages had been ripped from their bindings, chairs had been turned over and fabric ripped. Paintings had been torn from the wall, their frames broken and canvas ruined beyond repair.

            Lottie started up the stairs, the sounds of muffled grunts floating down to her. She felt Solas's magic lash out and a man flew over the banister and crashed to the floor. She waved her hand and froze him where he lay, his chest rose and fell slightly.

            As soon as she reached the top landing she rushed into the fray, throwing punches; runes activated on her gloves with each swing; lightening flashed from her hands as she connected to their bodies.

            Solas stood in the center of the room, his skin coated in a protective barrier. Anger washed across his face. Lottie slowly worked her way to his side, wondering distantly what the fuck was going on.

             "You throw the best parties." She quipped as she kicked the leg out from a man sneaking up on them; she followed the man to the ground and slammed an elbow to his temple. Solas laughed and blasted someone behind her.

            When the last one fell they both were breathing heavy. Blood ran down the side of Lottie's face and she swiped at it with her arm. Solas came out relatively unharmed; she raked her eyes over him checking for wounds, the side of his face was red and if she didn't know better, it would blossom into a bruise before the end of the night.

            "Well, that was fun." She pressed a hand to her stomach and laughed; wincing when the motion cause her ribs to twinge. She lifted the side of her shirt and saw that she was already rocking an awesome purple bruise. "Son of a bitch, did you see which one hit me?" She cast a glance around.

            Lottie's heart froze as she walked over to one and pushed his head to the side. On his throat were two serpents twining around each other.

            "We can't stay here." She whispered, terror in her voice.

            "What is it?" Solas walked over to her and looked down at the man before her. Lottie brought her phone out and took a couple pictures. She stood and walked away, phone pressed to her ear.

            "Dorian, bad news. I sent pictures, gather the rest of us and meet me at my house." Lottie hung up the phone and rounded on Solas. "Do you know these men?" Her tone was hard as she advanced toward him.

            "Yes, I invited them into my house to redecorate." Sarcasm dripped from his words. "Do you know them?" Solas watched her as she paced back and forth, her hands running through her hair.

            "We have to go." She grabbed his arm and started for the stairs.

            "Did you find it?" Terror took a firmer grip on her. Lottie started to shake and she backed up slowly. Solas opened his mouth but she covered it with her hand; the other pressing a finger to her lips.

            Slowly she stretched out her magic; let it seep through the floor, seeking the source of the voice. _Please let me be wrong_ , she prayed as her magic crept closer. "Fuck." She whispered. It was him.

            A roar exploded from under them. Solas looked down, as if he could see the source.

            "Move!" She screamed; her hand gripped his arm again. The floor erupted as she yanked them toward the windows. Footsteps echoed up the stairs.

            "Don't let her escape!"

            Lottie cast a look behind her; three more men had reached the second floor. Spells wound around the hands of two of them; the third held a gun and it was trained on her. The sound of the gun discharging rang out and a bullet ripped through her side.

            Her world exploded in white hot pain and she screamed, still running for the windows; throwing out a hand she broke the glass.

            Magic flew from Solas's fingertips and a barrier came around both of them. Alien magic twisted around them, looking for a way past. As they leapt from the second floor she warped the world slightly and greedily drank the mana from the spells.

            There was a slight pop, and they vanished. Solas stared at her as they fell through the air, throwing a hand out to soften the blow.

            She hit the ground, bending her knees and turning it into a roll. Solas hit wrong and rolled on his side. He screamed something at her, but blood was rushing through her ears and she couldn't make out his words.

            Lottie pressed a hand to her back and pulled it to her face; blood coated her hand. Wrapping her hand around Solas she yanked him to his feet. He started for the bike but she pulled him toward one of the SUVs.

            She slammed the door and had the vehicle in drive before he was even inside. As soon as his butt hit the chair she slammed her foot down on the gas. The car fishtailed, and she pressed into the seat. More pain climbing up her spine as pressure was put on the wound.

            Sound rushed back all at once. The roar of the engine hurting her ears, she glanced down and saw that she was redlining the RPMs.

            Solas's voice broke through the din; Lottie couldn't make sense of them though. Her heart beat hard in her chest. Lights flashed behind her. She yanked the rear view mirror to where she could see. Four sets of head lights followed them.

            She shoved her hand in her pocket, digging for her phone. Her palm was slick with blood and it almost slipped through her fingers as she pulled it free. The phone was bright and it hurt her eyes, pulling up her contacts she mashed Dorian's number.

            " _Lottie, where are you?_ " His voice was like a balm on her soul, her nerves settled.

            "I need a portal, now." Her voice shook as she spoke to him.

            "He can create portals?" Solas asked, his words finally making sense. Lottie shot him a glare.

            "Really? Now?" She asked as she jerked the wheel and hit pavement. The tires spun as they shot off again. Bullets plastered the back window and they both ducked, the car swerved slightly and she dropped the phone. "Gods damn it! Take the wheel." She looked over her shoulder. The cars were still there.

            One of them was pulling ahead of the others, the shadow of a man leaning out the window. The flash of a gun illuminating him as he continued to hound them with bullets.  

            Solas's hands shot out and grabbed the wheel, she dove for her phone. The sound of Dorian screaming could be heard before she put the phone back to her ear.

            " _Lottie? Lottie!_ "

            "We're good," Solas snorted in the background. She pressed a button on her phone. "You're on speaker." She yelled as she reached for the sun roof, fingers fumbling with the buttons. It started sliding back and the roar of wind tore through the car filling it with cold air.

            " _What's going on? Lottie!_ "

            "I'm not entirely sure she is listening." Solas spoke, Lottie climbed through the sun roof. "What are you doing?"

"Trying to save our lives." She growled as she popped her head out, "Talk to Dorian. Get us a portal."

            Using her hands she pushed her torso free from the car, "Keep her steady!" She screamed as she hooked her feet through the head rests. The wind whipped her hair past her face, it stung slightly; her thighs pressed against the edge of the opening.

            Bullets rushed past her, she tossed up a barrier and they bounced off. She dug deep, accessing her mana pool. Her hands wove through the air, the swirled around each other, frost building on her fingertips.

            Picking a spot on the ground she cast her spell. An ice wall burst into existence, the car in the lead smashed into it, the sound of metal crunching screamed through the air. The other three swerved violently, one of them almost flipped, but she felt oily magic right it at the last second.

            Lottie wiped her hand across her back again, blood dripping from her palm once more. Using that as a catalyst she reached for the being driving vehicle number three. Taking control of his mind she steered them toward a tree.

            She screamed in frustration as the oily magic ripped control of the spell from her and tried to take control of her mind. A barrier erected itself around her mind blocking him.

            _Fine, brute force it is_ , Lottie thought as she ripped a chunk of asphalt from the ground and slammed it into the side of car number three. The car spun out of control and rocked to a stop, steam billowing from under its hood.

            The magic lashed against her barrier, trying to rip it down. She felt it start to crumble, her eyes widening as a figure crawled through the sun roof of car number four.

            "Bastard!" She screamed as her protection finally fell, his magic assaulted her, trying to rip her mind open and drive her insane. "Solas!" She screamed as she tried to hold herself together.

            There was a slight shift in pressure and her mind popped, sex and cinnamon coated her. Relief flashed through Lottie.

            The oily magic slammed into her again, she tasted anger hidden within its depths and a sort of sick satisfaction wound through her.

            There was a flash of light, Solas's hand gripped the waist of her pants and she was pulled back into the car. Magic slammed into the side of their vehicle, the back end jerked, tires popped. They fishtailed again, and the world turned as the car flipped.

            Hands wrapped around her and she threw up a barrier around them. She heard a scream and was distantly aware that it came from her throat.

            Something slammed into her head, her world began to darken. Lottie struggled for consciousness, knowing that if she failed here it would be the end.

            "Solas," she mumbled as she crawled from the wreckage, her stomach heaved.

            Warm hands wrapped around her again, the world spun once more before she lost control and went under.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bum-bum-BUM!!!! Enter Corypheus! 
> 
> Feedback and kudos appreciated


	5. Cinnamon and Chocolate*

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things are revealed. Solas remembers something from his past life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some NSFW. I did say that it was going to be a 'fast burn'. And honestly Lottie is a hoe.

Solas sat in a corner, a rag pressed to his eyes. The sound of Scarlett's companions screaming at each other could be heard through the wall. There were more than three of them now. Introductions had not been made. They simply shoved him into the room, telling him to watch over Scarlett.

            She had been right, her friends were protective, but not enough it seems. Throwing him, a virtual stranger, into the room with her… it seemed reckless.

            He was grateful that they came for them after the car flipped; they had charged through the portal and gathered the two of them before disappearing back through it.

            Solas wanted to know how the Necromancer could create portals. It was supposed to be pure theory at this point. They were currently trying to make glass portals, through mirrors; but everything they had tried had been unsuccessful. What secrets did he hold?

            Scarlett moaned on the bed and pulled him from his thoughts. Slowly he pulled the rag from his eyes and got up. He crossed the small room and stood next to the bed.

            "It would be wise to refrain from moving." His words were soft as he pulled back the blankets, at his words she jerked to a sitting position. "Or the opposite works as well."

            "Where are we?" Solas watched as her hands flew to her head; Scarlett moaned again and curled in on herself. Her magic was erratic; cracking like a whip as she all but writhed in pain on the bed. He looked down on her, wondering again just who this woman was.

            "At Varric's I believe." He pressed his fingers gently to her temple and they glowed green briefly. A sigh escaped her lips as the pain eased, her form stilled. She smiled up at him, a dimple appeared on her cheek; his breath caught at the sight. Scarlett had fought with wild tenacity tonight. She had surprised him; a feat not easily accomplished. Not many would rush to the aid of a stranger, but she had done just that.

            "Thank you." Her words were a mere whisper as she stood on shaky feet. The yelling reached a new high and they both turned toward the sound. "How long have they been at it?"

            "About three hours now. More of them showed up." He lifted an eyebrow at her. "If you don't mind, could you explain what is going on?" He struggled to remain polite. Not only had his house been torn apart but they had been physically attacked by an unknown group of men.

            Well, unknown to him. Everyone else seemed privy to what was going on.

            Scarlett laughed and he suppressed the irritation that flowed through him. He did not think this situation was funny.

            "They haven't told you anything?" Solas watched as she walked away from the bed, "No, I don't suppose they would have." Solas tracked her across the room and his irritation spiked as she started searching through the drawers. "Varric you are a drunk and you don't have any in here?"

            Scarlett turned and started toward the door, "Scarlett-" She threw it open and disappeared down the hallway.

            Solas leaned his head back and stared at the ceiling, counting his heartbeats. When he reached five he walked out the door after her. Scarlett had barely made it to the end of the hall. He quickened his pace to catch up to her. For such a small woman, she moved with remarkable agility.

            Scarlett veered left at the end of the hall, away from the voices. He continued to follow her, the angry tirade fading again as she led them deeper into the house.

            "Do you know where the kitchen is?" She asked, her head turning in different directions. She took off again, not waiting for his reply. Solas pinched his nose between his forefinger and his thumb. The irritation he felt was slowly sliding toward anger.

            He followed the pull of her magic. It was subdued now; pain crawled across it written in unspoken letters. The woman before him walked with hunched shoulders; her hand came up and wiped something from her face.

            Solas slowed as he walked behind her, _is she crying_? His anger subsided as he continued to follow her. He walked into a room; she was once more rummaging through drawers and opening cabinets. Solas heard the clink of glass and her magic lifted slightly as she pulled out a bottle of alcohol.

            "Is your answer to everything alcohol?" Solas asked, disbelief that she could drink at a time like this flowing through him.

            She didn't respond, and he watched as she pulled two glasses from a shelf. She poured a generous amount into each. As she passed by him she pressed one into his hand.

            "Trust me." The bottle was tucked under her arm as she made her way toward the angry voices.

            Solas felt her magic perk up more as she took a gulp from her glass. She gained an extra sway around her hips and tossed her hair over her shoulder.

            What was going on? What could be so bad that she needed liquid courage to confront her friends?

            He watched as her whole demeanor changed. She went from walking like an abused child to striding like she owned the room. Her walk almost begged someone to confront her; muscles coiled tightly. Red hair hung down to her waist, and it swayed with every step she took.

            Scarlett slammed into the room. "Enough." One word was all it took for them to be silenced.

            Surprise shot through Solas. He looked around the room; all of them were staring at the small woman before him. They watched her as she moved to Dorian; she held out her hand and snapped her fingers.

            Solas stayed where he was, content to watch and see what happened.

 

Lottie smiled up at Dorian as she took the cigarettes from his hand. When she glanced at Varric he nodded and she lit one up, relishing the way it calmed her nerves.

            Her life had officially gone to the Void in a handbasket.

            She turned back to the room, eyes scanning the crowd. They watched her quietly waiting for her to pull some sort of solution from thin air.

            Faces were missing, and anxiety wound its way through her. Had her people been attacked?

            "Cullen?" She asked, his blond curls were not among those gathered before her.

            "He couldn't make it." Dorian said from behind her, "This was supposed to be a party, not a rescue mission." She nodded and took another drink, setting the bottle down within easy reach; relief eased some of the tension in her stomach.

            "I'm assuming the same goes for Viv and Josie?" Her lungs filled with smoke once more and her eyes landed on an ashtray; she tapped the ashes off the end of the cigarette. When no one commented she took in the rest of her companions.

            Cassandra was here, as was Leliana and Thom. She remembered that he liked to be called Blackwall and switched her mindset. Her eyes continued to dance across the different faces, another one was missing.

            "Anyone have eyes on Sera?" Lottie pushed her anxiety down, tried to quell her queasy stomach. Hadn't she just been bitching to Dorian about missing the old days; about not wanting to run again?

            Solas spoke up behind her and she turned to watch him, his magic lashing violently at the air. "My sister is a part of this?" He was all growly and it did something to her insides. She wasn't sure she disliked what his words did.

            Slowly she turned to him, watching the way his shoulders tightened. His eyebrows were pinched and his mouth was a mashed into a disapproving line; such hostility from a man who didn't know shit about what was going on.

            "She is with my people." Varric replied when she didn't respond. Lottie was still looking at Solas, but she nodded at his words.

            "Good, I'm not sure if it's a good idea for her to be brought in." Lottie lifted an eyebrow at Solas, the anger written across his face fading slightly at her words. His eyebrows were still drawn. "I'm sure everyone is caught up by now?"

            "We aren't entirely sure what happened boss." Bull said, her eyes flashed to him. He sat in a plush chair, his arm resting on the side and his head propped up on his fist.

            "Dorian didn't share with the class?" Lottie sighed as she pulled her phone from her back pocket. She pulled up the pictures and passed her phone to him. "They're back."

            She took another drag, tapping the ashes off once more.

            "That is something we did know." Leliana spoke up, she was in a corner. Her face was half hidden by shadows as she leaned against the wall.

            "And you didn't tell us Red?" Bull asked as he turned his head toward her.

            "It was not important at the time. He's gone, and they are harmless."

            "He isn't gone." Lottie picked up her glass and took a drink. All eyes turned back to her. She allowed the burn to ride down her throat, tension built up in the room.

            "What do you mean he isn't gone?" Cassandra asked, she leaned against Varric's chair, arms crossed over her chest.

            "I think it's perfectly clear what she means Seeker." Varric's words were borderline caustic. Cassandra slapped the back of his head and he laughed at her.

            "Varric," Lottie chided as she ground out the cigarette. "He was at Solas's house tonight. He was looking for something." All eyes in the room slid past her to Solas, "No, they were not invited, so I don't think he knows what they were looking for."

            "What is going on?" No one deigned to answer Solas's question. Lottie sighed, knowing that soon it would make sense. There was no point in delaying simply to catch up the new comer. And it just had to be a member of the Evanuris. The Gods really did hate her.

            "Leliana have your people heard anything?"

            "I have received no reports of Corypheus's return." She pushed off of her perch against the wall and walked from the room, agitation clung to her making her movements stiff.

            "Corypheus? He's dead." Solas's voice was filled with confidence; Lottie turned to him and watched as he walked closer. "He has been for almost a decade."

            "Preaching to the choir, hon. I, of all people, didn't think he would walk away when I drove my sword into his chest." She watched as shock slid across his face, confusion hot on its heels, finally recognition flowed onto his face. She lifted a corner of her mouth at him. "All caught up buttercup?"

            "You're the…" His words trailed off, Lottie stared at him in the ensuing silence; his brows no longer furrowed as he took in her face.  

            Varric helpfully completed his thought for him. "Inquisitor?" Lottie flinched at her title; at least it was better than her name.

            "So what's the plan Lady Inquisitor?" Blackwall stood before a window, staring out at the sky; his arms folded across his chest. His words redirected the group to the task at hand.

            "Well running is completely out of the question now." Lottie was still looking at Solas, he had wiped all emotion from his face; his magic clung tightly to him, hovering just over his skin as it looped and curled in on itself. "I suggest coming out of retirement." She turned to Cassandra. "We still have our old contacts yes?"

            "A few of them vanished, and we have been unsuccessful in making contact over the years. It is entirely possible that the Venatori picked them off." Varric stood and crossed to where Lottie had lay down the bottle; he refilled his glass then splashed some into hers. "I'm sure Nightingale has information on the others."

            Lottie nodded, "I'm positive Leliana will pull something out of her hat. Until then I need ears to the ground. Dorian, my Tevinter," she turned to face him, "go to the others. Let them know what happened."

            "Of course love." He waved a hand and a portal opened behind him.

            "Wait," her voice rang out. Dorian had one foot in the portal; she hadn't been expecting him to be so quick about it. She turned to look at the rest of them before turning back to Dorian. "Please make sure to tell them that if they do not wish to return, that I understand." Her voice was but a whisper. Dorian gave her a soft look before stepping through the portal.

            "That goes for everyone else here as well. Won't lie, I fucked up, and fucked up bad. Some of you have families now. I don't expect you to stay because of our history." The faces that stared back at her varied in emotion.

            Their reactions all came at once. Bull roared with laughter, saying that the fight was going to be magnificent and he wouldn't miss it for anything; also vulgar words about her red hair.

            Cassandra raged at her and threw a crystal bowl at the wall. Varric, at her response, cut off mid rant and switched his ire to Cassandra. The bowl was apparently expensive.

            Blackwall walked over to Lottie, stopping a few feet from her. He gazed down at her, sorrow in his eyes.

            "We've all messed up some way or another. This is not your fault, and it was foolish of you to think we'd turn away." He turned and walked out of the room, "Let me know when you need me."

            Varric and Cassandra had stopped talking when Blackwall started. Cassandra pointed at his retreating form. "Agreed." She then turned and walked out too. "I'm going home, I'll be back tomorrow." Her disgusted grunt could be heard as the front door slammed.

            Varric winced. "You deserved that you know." Lottie sighed and nodded.

            "Yeah, I guess I did."

            "Anyway, you're place probably isn't safe. You can crash here until we get new headquarters." He turned to look at Solas. "You're welcome too; Dorian said you handled yourself well. Welcome to the Inquisition." He covered a yawn.

            "Get some sleep, Varric." He waved a hand at her but followed her advice and started for his room.

            "Do you need me boss?"

            "No, Bull. Go home, tomorrow will be early enough."

 

Solas watched, everyone scattered to the winds and still no introductions. Though, he had managed to pick up a few names.

            Leliana, the other red haired woman, never did return.

            Scarlett made a soft sound that drew his gaze. She had hunched in on herself again, arms wrapped around her chest. Again her whole demeanor changed before his eyes. The strong woman, who had stood before her friends and confidently made plans to stop a man the world thought long dead and decayed, was gone in the blink of an eye.

            Something inside him pulled toward her, wanted to go to her; the desire to pull her close and cradle her head against him as he whispered soft words to her was almost overwhelming. His hands ached to hold her, to caress her, to wash away the hurt with gentle kisses and a tender touch.

            He wanted to envelop her with his embrace and coax the strong woman out again; wanted to see passion in her eyes as she gazed at him. He wanted to banish whatever caused her body to shake, and give her a new reason to tremble.

            He knew though, that his attention would not be appreciated. She was kind, having invited him to follow this morning; though he suspected ulterior motives. She was brave, having saved his life earlier; she had been so afraid, but still she made sure he made it out. No, she did not need him.

            As he gazed at her he realized none of his feelings made sense. He met her… was it really just the wee hours of—he glanced at his watch—yesterday morning? It seemed like a life time had happened. But still… _tantalizing_.

            One of her arms move, the motion drawing him from his thoughts. She picks up her glass and drained the last of the amber liquid, he watched as her throat constricted and she swallowed. The glass clinked softly as she set it down with gentle fingers.

            Her whole body moved as she took a breath and released it in a ragged rush. Something inside Solas clenched as he bore witness to her pain. He had no right to see this.

            He cleared his throat and Scarlett jumped slightly. Her hand came up and wiped something from her face; tears he suspected and a small part of him broke. Not for the first time he wondered what happened to her, what was so terrible, that she still felt its pain years later.

            Scarlett turned to him, a cocky smirk pulled up one corner of her mouth; her eyes were red.

            "So quiet you are, standing there." Her words are slurred slightly, "Sneaky wolf…" Her hand came up again; this time to run through her hair, snagging on a knot. "Are you going to run? Tell them what I am? The praise you would receive."

            "No." The word fell from his mouth before he could think twice; shock flowed across her face, and through his veins. Solas reflected, and realized that no, he would not turn on her. He would not see her undone at the hands of his kin.

            "Well then… let's find you a place to sleep."

 

He woke with a cold sweat upon his brow. A glance at the clock and the covered windows showed that it has naught been but an hour since he fell into an uneasy sleep; a rare occurrence for him, as he is a Dreamer.

            Lightning lit up the windows; thunder rolled across the room shaking the panes slightly. Rain splattered across the glass sounding more like hail then water.

            Words floated through Solas's mind, reminding him of his dream and of what woke him.

_A woman whispers his name, only it's not_ his _name. They are in a grove, and her heart is breaking; he can see it in her eyes. She is begging him not to leave; her green eyes fill with tears as she reaches for him._

"You have a rare and marvelous spirit. In another world _-_ " _the words come from his throat, and pain unimaginable courses through him and they grip his heart. His love for this woman is deep, and pure; but he breaks everything he touches, the evidence clear on her face. The man in his dreams—Solas theorizes maybe the man is_ him _—does not wish to hurt her though he does anyway._

"Why not this one?" _Her words catch in her throat as she steps toward him. She looks so akin to Scarlett; the eyes, the hunch to her shoulders, how she hugs herself, the full lower lip, the high cheekbones._

"I can't." _Resolve, the man—Solas—has to do something important, something horrible; he cannot bear to let her see what he must do, what he would become._ "I'm sorry." _Solas has never meant the words more; he walks away with his head down, shame and despair making his shoulders heavy._

            _He hears her fall to her knees. Scarlett cries, the sound is muffled._

            A sound pulled the dream from his reach, and he was grateful. It was something he did not want dwell on; he feared it was a memory of a different time… a different _life_.

            Solas turned his head and stares at the wall as the sound came again. It sounds needful and it came from Scarlett's room. Worry coursed through him; he remembered how she curled in on herself earlier, vulnerable and hurting.

            He stood in front of her door; Solas did not remember leaving the bed. His hand hovered over the handle as he debated on opening it. Another sound floats through the door, he imagined her curled into a ball and without another thought he opened the door.

            Lightning came again illuminating the room for a second; the scene before him seared into his mind. Scarlett was splayed on the bed, skin bare to the world, blood red hair fanned across her pillow. The blanket is tangled around her calves and her hand is between glistening thighs; the other is on her chest, a nipple pinched between her a finger and thumb.

            Solas was frozen in place, horror cold in his stomach. He knew that this was a private, intimate moment and he should not be a witness; but he cannot, for the life of him, _move_. He is hard and pressed tightly against his pants; he was disgusted with himself.

            " _Solas_ ," she moaned, and for a moment he is terrified that she has seen him. Lightning flashed again, her eyes were on him. He is petrified, knowing that at any moment she was going to scream, or hit him, or even kill him; he remembered that Varric is a crack shot with a gun and hoped that he doesn't have one. _She is the_ Inquisitor; she was ruthless nearly a decade ago, now she may be even worse.

            A mage light winked into being, hovering above the center of the bed; over her. His heart raced and he was throbbing now; pressed painfully against clothing. He struggled to keep his eyes on her face; he willed his features into a mask of neutrality he does not feel.

            She is staring at him, her lids covering all but a portion of her eyes. Her hand moved between her thighs, it was a deliberate motion. His eyes widen as he watched Scarlett worry her lower lip between her teeth, she moaned and her hips arched off the bed; the sheets were slick beneath her.

            His head was pounding with rushing blood, his jaw clenched and nostrils flared; he is breathing heavy, each breath is labored and audible. The possibility that she wants _him_ is a foreign concept. His mind was reeling; the dream came back. _In another world…_

            Scarlett moaned his name again and writhed on the bed; her eyes locked on his. Her tongue darted out and wet her bottom lip.

            Solas didn't remember crossing the room, didn't remember fisting his hand in her hair and crushing her small frame to his body. Sin and chocolate coat his tongue, invade his nose, and washed over his soul.

            His hand replaced hers between her thighs, and she moaned against his mouth; he swallowed the sound greedily. Her hips bucked, and he smiled against her lips. Their tongues battled for dominance; he was determined to win.

            Scarlett placed her hand over his and curled two of his fingers, pressing them into her. Solas groaned, she broke the kiss long enough to laugh against skin; his groan turned into a growl and he bit her lower lip, she hummed in approval.

            She whispered incoherent words into his mouth as she tugged him closer; legs closed around his waist and they are pressed together. His clothes already gone, like the memory of their removal.

            " _Please_ ," she begged as she rocked against him. His mind was clouded with desire; he had never wanted anything this badly before in his life, not in _this_ life. Solas relented and moved into her.

            Scarlett sighed against his throat, her head tucked between his jaw and shoulder. Teeth nip at his skin, followed by that delicious tongue of hers. He cradled her head with his hand and starts to move. Her feet press into the bed as she lifted her hips to meet his.

            His teeth grazed the top of her ear, and she bucked wildly under him; her own sunk into his skin as she muffled a scream.

            " _More,_ " she whispered into his ear, her tongue darted out to trail along the edge. He growled and rolled them over, hands around her waist he pulled her up and moved back inside her. His toes curled at the feeling of her surrounding him. His hands gripped her with bruising force, he smiled; a reminder for tomorrow.

            Solas leaned up toward her, hand slid up her stomach; he paused briefly at her breasts. A smile crossed his face as Scarlett sucked in air between clenched teeth. He continued his path upward and wrapped his hand around her shoulder.

            Scarlett laid her head on his shoulder, her hands came up to rest behind his head; each thrust bringing them closer to the edge.

            Constant noises fell from her lips, a never ending trail of praise. He tilted her head toward him and captured her mouth again, wanting to drink her little mewling sounds.

            " _More, please gods more_."

            His hand left her jaw and slid down to her core, his fingers circled her clit and she groaned. She sucked on his tongue and he prayed she was close because he is certain he won't last much longer.

            Scarlett placed her hand over his and moved his fingers down; again she curled them and slid them insider her. He moaned into her as he moved them in time with each thrust; she is impossibly tight around him.

            She tossed her head back and forth as she rode him. His breath was coming hard and fast now, but it caught at the wild look of pleasure in her half closed eyes. He did this to her; the strong woman, the broken woman, the confident woman, all of her is writhing against him, _him_.

            A feral growl left his throat and she began to chant his name. The desire to sink his teeth into her exposed throat rode him and he struck; tongue swirling against her skin. His thumb caressed her bud. She screamed his name as she found her release.

            The sound of her undoing sent him over the edge and he shuddered as lights danced across his sight.

            Scarlett went limp against him, her hands once more cradling his head.

            Solas pressed kisses along her jaw and she smiles, a giggle falling from her lips as she turned her head and pressed her lips to his.

            Slowly he released her, gently he laid her down. Scarlett hooked a finger around his and she pulled him down next to her.

            Surprise enveloped him as she rolled to face him and snuggled close; a leg tossed over his waist, arm draped across his chest. She sighed into the crook of his neck; he wrapped his arms around her, his fingers skimmed across her back in little swirling designs.

            Soon her breathing leveled out and lulled him into following; dream still in the back of his mind.

 

Lottie woke the next morning, eyes flying wide open when Solas rolled over; his hand against her waist and he pulled her close.

            So it _wasn't_ a dream. Well then…

            Gently she slid from him, he mumbled something and she stilled; she did _not_ want to have the conversation that happens after spontaneous sex. Well either it was that or he vanished before she was out of the shower. She crossed her fingers and prayed; for which outcome she wasn't entirely sure.

            She thought in the shower, berated herself; two days was an inappropriate length of time for two people to know each other and bump ugly bits. She was too old to behave that way.

            _Mind blowing sex_ , her inner voice whispered. Yes, she agreed, it was knock your socks off, curl your toes, and rip out your hair mind blowing sex. Still, inappropriate time frame.

            When she was dressed and slipping from the room—Solas still asleep on the bed—she knew three things: one, inappropriate time frame; two, mind blowing sex; three, she wanted _more_ of it.

            Dorian was back and his gaze zeroed in on the mark that graced her neck. Lottie winced and tried to back out of the room. No use, he ported behind her and clicked his tongue at her.

            "Took my advice I see. I'm going to assume that he is firmly on our side now?" His smile is smug and covered half of his face. Scarlett tossed her head back and groaned. "You don't look happy… Don't tell me he's _bad_ at it?"

            "I thought I was done with being a hoe Dorian! But no, get a little liquor in me and a near death experience and apparently I'm primed and raring to go." She snorted and ran a hand through her hair. "But no, he was not…" She couldn't bring herself to finish the thought.

            "We can compare notes. I can get Bull to give him pointers; he is _really_ embarrassingly good at it. Just don't tell him I said that." Dorian cast a wary look around, "Don't need to inflate that ego of his anymore than necessary."

            "Too late." Bull growled as he stepped around a corner, passion pooled in his eyes.

            "Ga! No, we are not doing this. Not this early in the morning." Lottie waved her hands between them.

            Bull then noticed her mark, "A little soon boss?"

            She levels a glare at him and growls "For that you get to be my punching bag." He smirked at her and followed as she walks away. Dorian trailed behind them; knowing that this was going to get interesting; someone was going to need his limited healing expertise.

 

Lottie took in a ragged breath, Bull stood opposite her. He had every advantage; longer reach, strength, height, speed. The only thing he didn't have on her was flexibility.

            They've gone toe to toe for the last two rounds, each claiming victory once. Third round decided all. She did not like to lose, but what woman did?

            If he won she was calling him a cheater; no one that big should be that quick.

            She touched her fingers to her jaw, the ache dull and claiming part of her attention. Bull had landed a lucky blow during the first round. Knocked her senseless; Dorian had clapped in the background.

            He came at her like quicksilver; massive hands stretched for her. Lottie had learned years ago not to grapple with someone stronger than her; or two and a half feet taller. Which meant she grappled with _no one_.

            She ducked under one arm, his fist closed on the end of her hair. He yanked, pulling her back; Lottie struck out, slamming her fist into his elbow, going directly for his funny bone and his hold loosened.

            Bull growled at her as he swung with his other hand, trying to knock her off balance. She rolled past it and climbed—literally, the man was fucking huge—up his back.

            With knees planted in the curve of his spine she curled into a ball and wrapped an arm around his neck; the other gripped her wrist and she tucked her head. It was a sloppy choke hold, but she needed to take him down for the win.

            Did she mention she didn't like to lose?

            The giant of a man struggled as he grasped behind him, his muscles becoming his downfall. Bull could not reach her from her current position. Subtly he shifted his weight, leaned back just a hair.

            Something niggled at the back of her mind as he continued to lean. She prepped herself; just in case. She had been body slammed by him before and _that_ was not an experience she wanted to repeat.

            With a grunt he started to throw himself backward; Lottie released her hold on his neck and hit the floor, barely managing to squeeze between his legs. His arms pin wheeled as his balance was thrown off by the loss of her weight. She stood, hooking her leg around the back of his knee she tugged.

            Lottie jumped on his chest, her feet planted firmly; one on his chest, the other at his throat.

            Iron Bull glared up at her.

            "Get off." He growled around her foot. She smiled at him, her chest heaving with every breath she took. The first two rounds had been brutal. Lottie rose and fell slightly with every labored breath that Bull took.

            Removing her foot from his throat and tapped it on the side of his face once. "I still got it." She winked at him as she stepped off. As soon as her feet hit the floor he swept out a hand and knocked her on the flat of her back.

            Air rushed out of her lungs and she lashed out with a foot. Her foot connected and she heard a snicker from across the room. Dorian was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.

            "You two are so charming." Footsteps echoed as he approached. "But it is honestly _that_ important to win?" Lottie glared up at him as his shadow fell over her face. "Right, who am I to question the desire to win?"

            Bull worked his way to his feet and stretched out his hand to Lottie. She slapped her palm against his and he yanked her to her feet.

            "You're slipping Boss, I actually won one."

            "Well, it has been about seven years since I fought on a regular basis…" Lottie tossed him a dry look, "What did you expect? Setting rules about no magic, of course you'd have the upper hand."

            "But yet you still beat me." His tone was casual as he walked toward the door, he wouldn't meet her gaze.

            "You pulled your punches didn't you?" Lottie growled as followed behind them, Dorian was in the lead. Bull laughed.

            Varric popped up around a corner, he raised an eyebrow at her and walked back the way he came. Lottie gave a sigh and followed him down the new path, Bull and Dorian's voices fading into oblivion as she closed a door behind her.

 

Solas woke to an empty bed; regret heavy in his stomach. Scarlett had been a temptress, but he was not sure he wanted to…

            To what? Get to know her? He knew that he did, she was such an interesting woman. But last night was not the way to do it. He should have closed the door, never gotten out of bed. Done something other than allow that to happen.

            That infernal dream had stoked feelings that he did not possess. Solas vowed to be more vigilant in the future.

            If he was allowed to stay. Corypheus was a problem for all of Thedas. The last time he had attempted his rise to power war had engulfed the world. No one had been able to pin him down; except for the Inquisitor and her group of friends.

            The ones that were outside that door. Hopefully they were plotting, or knew more than they let on last night.

            Solas pulled out his phone and sent a message to Cole again. Scarlett was not the only person with resources.

            Quickly he climbed from the bed and showered; determination lined his jaw, he would not be turned away.

            When he emerged from her room he strode confidently down the hall. Posturing was necessary.

 

Lottie sighed, her eyes locked on the report from Leliana. "How soon?" Her stomach roiled and anger flooded her. This was something she should have expected.

            Corypheus had never been subtle. Back in the day he had loved to posture, wanted the whole world to see. Every event was a carefully choreographed dance, and he loved to be center stage.

            The paper crumpled in her hand as she waited for a response.

            "Unknown," the red haired woman replied. "It is possible that your appearance has made him step up his time table. He cannot allow you to gain a foot hold again."

            Leliana had gone to Varric with the information. Before he had joined Lottie and her gang he had been a spymaster himself.

            "I need more Leliana," Lottie pushed to her feet and looked at her. "He cannot be allowed to run rampant a second time. The world almost didn't survive the first."

Leliana nodded at her, Lottie knew that the other woman was already aware of this and was probably working on wringing every bit of information she could out of informants. She did not need to be encouraged.

            Leliana was the best in the business.

            "I'll speak with Dorian, we haven't had a chance to discuss the others returning." Lottie walked toward the door; pausing when Varric finally spoke up.

            "Are you going to take your old face?" Lottie turned to him. "There isn't a point in hiding anymore is there? And the world feared that face."

            "It will be weird to look in the mirror after nine years. I've gotten used to matching eyes." She left the room to the sound of Varric laughing.

            As she walked down the hall she thought of her old face, it hadn't even occurred to her to change back. But it made sense. When this was all over she may need to hide again, and who would suspect a bar owner from Haven?

            Lottie began unweaving the spell she placed so long ago. It was nothing but a simple illusion and Varric was right, the world knew her a certain way; time to live up to their expectations again.

            "I'm going to miss the red hair." Bull quipped as she walked into the room. Lottie flipped him off.

            "Have you seen Dorian?" Lottie knew that he had. The two were never far apart in times of trouble. Not that she could blame them; love was a strong motivator.

            "He went to grab food, said something about you not taking care of yourself."

            "Great, the world is teetering and he is thinking with his stomach." Lottie turned and left the room, headed for the kitchen. If he was getting food then she would bake. Her hands clenched, when she got angry chocolate became a big part of her life.

 

Solas walked into the kitchen, stopping when a woman violently ripped open the oven door and threw a sheet of cookies into it.

            "Glad to see you're finally awake. After last night you earned it." Solas's jaw clenched at the mention of last night. Had Scarlett told everyone?

            He watched the woman walk back to a bowl and start rolling dough into balls. The voice was familiar, had he met her before? It was possible, there were so many new faces in the last couple days and not all faces had names to go with them.

            "I'm sorry, have we met?" Laughter met his words and his confusion wound a little deeper. Magic lashed across the room, it was delighted; and tasted of…

            Sin and chocolate.

            "Scarlett?"

            "When you go into hiding and magic is at your disposal you don't keep your birth face." She tossed a ball of dough into the bowl and turned to him. "Sorry, this is the real me."

            White hair hung down to the middle of her back, it was a wild mane of curls. The scars were still the same, one across the eye and along the jaw. Tattoos covered her body, winding from the back of her fingers up to her temples; they were an archaic language, one long dead and no longer spoken.

            But the most striking thing was her eyes; one was gold, the other blue.

            "I look more like the wanted posters now, yeah?" She turned back to the bowl and continued to roll the dough, her hands were rough as she did so; the balls were no longer perfect little circles. "Like the monster they painted me to be. Only thing I ever did wrong was kill a man before the Evanuris could."

            The timer rang on the oven and she ripped it open again, movements jerky. The oven door slammed shut and she started sliding the cookies off the sheet and onto a plate.

            "Here, take these out to Bull, he'll like you better if you bring him sweets." The plate of cookies was shoved into his hands. They smelled of chocolate and cinnamon.

            Solas watched her a moment longer, somehow the woman before him seemed to fit more... It was appropriate though, the posturing.

            When he returned to the room where Iron Bull was, Dorian was leaned over him; food left forgotten on the table. Solas cleared his throat and they both sighed before Dorian stepped back.

            "She's baking?" Dorian's face pinched. "What happened?" Behind him Iron Bull stood and swiped the cookies from his hand.

            "Does something bad need to have happened for her to bake? Perhaps she just wanted sweets." Solas replied as he watched the larger man tuck into the cookies.

            Dorian glared at him and Solas just watched passively. "You know absolutely nothing about her do you? All the information your kind has gathered on her and you don't know the woman underneath. Monster is all you people can see."

            "Enough, Dorian." Scarlett walked into the room, hands still covered in dough. Solas paid more attention now, her magic had seemed delighted, but underneath there was something else. "I don't need him to understand me. And it doesn't matter what he sees. All I need is to know who all is coming."

            "Vivienne cannot be torn away; her 'loyal mages' need her more now than ever." He bit out the words, distain that she would not help evident in his voice. "Josie will assist, but she wishes to remind you that she is not a fighter. She will do her best to keep us out of jail. Cullen is determined to be here, and said to expect him by nightfall."

            More new people, just how many did the Inquisitor have in her back pocket? The information that the Evanuris was woefully thin, and half of the names of her people didn't appear in her file. Not even a picture of her face had been included, just rough sketches from eyewitness accounts; no one knew who the woman had been. Scarlett drew him from his ponderings.

            "Regrettable about Viv, but I figured she wouldn't." Solas watched as Scarlett tapped her foot in thought. "Corypheus is up to something, Leliana's people dug up some information and it isn't going to be pretty. Be ready, we have to move at a moment's notice."

            "You know something?" Bull mumbled around a mouthful of cookies. Solas watched in distain.

            "According to Leliana's information, he's going to blow up the Pantheon."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Coryphshit up to his no goodness.


	6. Catching Up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Depression is a bitch. Dorian gets mad.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So if you suffer from depression, I understand. This chapter is a little rough toward the end. Please remember that there are people who love you and if you are having a bad day please, please, reach out and talk to someone.

Varric growled something out. It wasn't subtle, but it was muffled. Bianca had come out of the safe a few hours ago. Stripped down to bare parts to be thoroughly cleaned. A rag in one hand, the barrel in the other. A slight shine of sweat graced his brow.

            That was how Lottie found him. "I never thought you'd need Bianca again." The words were a whisper. Varric looked up and took her in. "I _hoped_ she would be put up, possibly across a mantle. Remnant of a former life."

            "Don't be so harsh on yourself Luck." He called out, hoping to coax her into the room where the others couldn't see how battered her spirit was. Her lips curled at the nickname he used to use. That too had been tucked away. But if anything, they needed her luck again. "Nobody saw this coming, what a plot twist."

            "How is she?" Slowly she slunk from the doorway toward a chair.

            "A little more cleaning and she'll be good as new." He reassured. His eyes back on the rifle in his hands.

            She snorts indelicately, "Not the gun dwarf, the woman." A hand disappeared into her coat pocket. A bag of cookies flew toward his desk. There was a _thump_ as they landed. He tracked their progress.

            His heart clenched at the thought of the rifle's name sake. Though it beat heavily in his chest, it still belonged to her. Always would. Lottie knew this, and knew that bringing out the 'gun' as she so rudely put it, would stir the embers of his memory.

            Sighing he sat back, eyes darting to the clock. Shit it was only two in the afternoon. "Fuck it, five o'clock somewhere right?" He needed alcohol for this conversation. She needed alcohol _period._ He could tell by the look in her eyes. Panic was welling up quickly in them. He remembered what she looked like, on that day nine years ago. When the world burned and she stood between the fire and the rest of them. She had been so young, barely nineteen. He still had nightmares about it. The scar over her gold eye was created that day. Scooting his chair back he reached for the lowest drawer on his desk. "Don't tell Bull about this stash or I'll cut you off."

            Varric pulled the single malt whiskey out of the drawer before kicking it shut again. Two glasses clinked onto the desk, splashing some into each; his hand pushing one toward her. It was like a shroud pulled over her. She put on her brave face. Her body unfurled as she reached for it.

            "Is this-?"

            "Expensive." He replied as he lifted his glass and drained the contents. He refilled it and set the bottle on the desk, leaning back in his chair as he sipped from the glass this time. "She's still married."

            "And?" She snorts again, draining her own before reaching toward the bottle; one eyebrow arched at him. He nodded and she quickly closed her delicate fingers around the neck and pulled it toward her.

            "Married Luck." He repeated. "And we're not even supposed to be in the same country." It was added as an afterthought. If she hadn't been married….

            "Is she happy?" They'd been down this road before. After Corypheus was dealt with last time Luck insisted they all find happiness while she tracked down the last of the Venatori. Hero and Ruffles paired up, and now had two children. Curly managed to snag the Hero of Feralden; someone he carried with him since the incident from his past. Seeker had met a young warrior but that hadn't lasted. He didn't think Nightingale would ever settle down after what happened with Marjolaine. Iron Lady even managed to save her beloved with Luck's help and that snowy wyvern heart.

            But him? He would never move past Bianca, and Luck knew it.

            "I don't know." He gestured violently before setting his glass down. "I haven't heard-"

            "Bullshit." She rasped around the burn, eyeing the bottle. It was good, really good. The burn leaving a trail of fire through her veins. This could power her through this whole shit fest she found herself in. Glancing at the label she vowed to get her hands on a few bottles for her private stock. "I know you've had contact with her in the last year."

            "How did you-?" He broke off with a scoff. Of course Luck knew. "Alright, she came to me with a problem. The Merchant's Guild put a hit on her husband. She wanted to know who it was. I pulled a few strings, got her a name."

            "Really Varric?" She eyed him, "Wasn't that a little foolish? Considering that if she wasn't married-"

            "I wasn't going to turn her away." He groused, though he was aware that if her husband died… "Besides, that isn't how… I just want…"

            "I know Varric." She said softly. He looked into her miss matched eyes.

            "It doesn't matter, her family hates me." He sighed, hand stretched out indicating the bottle. She slid it back toward him.

            "They didn't put a hit out on you again, did they?" Her eyes flash with malice. She understood the political marriage, but trying to kill the man your daughter loved? That was harsh in any situation.

            "Of course they did." He gulped down the whiskey, head spinning slightly. "Don't worry about it. They failed."

            "Obviously." She retorted. "I'll kill them if you want." It was quiet, and Varric sighed in the silence that followed. Luck stared at him and he had no doubt that she would at that. Luck was a little strange that way. Oddly shy, fiercely protective of anyone she dubbed _hers_. She once told him 'nobody fucks with my people and lives'. He'd seen it too. At eighteen she had punched a hole through the heart of a Templar in body armor that had gunned down one of the mages that was a part of their organization. Lucy was her name if he remembered correctly. She had been involved with Luck back then. It took Dorian and a bag of Elfroot to get her back on her feet. 

            "I know Luck."

            "Just say the word." He could already see the shroud vanishing around her. Slowly the ball of anxiety worked its way back into her eye.

            "None of that." He reprimanded. Andraste's tits! He hated being the adult in their relationship. "We'll get him."

            Her body coiled slightly before she swiftly stood and exited the room without another word. A faint trace of chocolate the only evidence that she had been there in the first place. Well, besides the glass and a bag of cookies. His hand reached out and opened the bag. Where had she even gotten the stuff to make cookies?

 

"Cullen!" Lottie screamed as she ran toward the ex-Templar. She slammed into the large human, he a good foot and a half taller than she. Her arms wrapped around his neck, giving him a fierce hug. "Gods it's good to see you."

            He laughed as his own arms snaked around her slim waist. She'd lost weight since he saw her last. "Maker's breath." He gasped, she may be slight but she hit him like a freight train. "Have you been drinking?"

            "Maybe?" She joked as she let go of him and stepped back. "And that's it? I haven't seen you in four years and the first word-?"

            He pulled her back into a hug and she hummed with approval. "It's good to see you too Lottie."

            "How is Angie?" She asked as he all but squashed her. He released her after a moment and she reached for his bag. Hefting it over her shoulder she started him toward one of the guest bedrooms. Varric was right, they needed new headquarters. His place could only hold so many people.

            "Wonderful." The tone of his voice caused her lips to split into a smile. Cullen worshiped Angelica with all his heart. He had since… well best not to think of that right now. "We're expecting in the fall." The words punched a hole in her chest. Spinning she looked at him, tears in her eyes.

            "You shouldn't be here." She whispered. "Angie-"

            "Understands," he cut off, "and I'm not about to let you face that monster alone." Gently he took the bag from her hands. "Besides, Angie would tear me to shreds if anything happened to you. She's quite taken with you, you know?"

            "Oh Cullen," she started again but quickly brushed her thoughts aside. She knew she couldn't do this alone and if both of them were okay with him being here then there wasn't anything she could do to change his mind. "Is she at least safe?"

            "And sound," he smiled down at her. Lottie was forever worrying about her people. "She's staying with her family in Denerim." His nose lifted slightly and he breathed deeply. "Baking already?"

            She flushed under his gaze, "It's been an eventful couple days." Turning Lottie gestured for him to follow her. "I'm not sure there are any left. Bull found them." Her hands twined through her hair, pulling a portion of it over her shoulders.

            "Found them? Or did you bribe him with them?" He laughed.

            "What-? I would never!"

            "Of course." She threw him a look over her shoulder that made him smile.

            "Boy or girl?" She asked suddenly, switching the topic. His mind whirled for a moment before he caught up.

            "Twins." He replied. She barked laughter.

            "Oh, I bet Angie just loves that." He sighed. Indeed she was. Angie always wanted twins. "Isn't that what she always wanted? Two children, one birth?"

            "Says that only children are spoiled rotten and turn out bad." He smiled that Lottie remembered. "She wants to know when you are coming to visit by the way."

            "Oh… I don't know if that's… a good idea Cullen." She opened a door and stepped inside. "It probably isn't safe for me to visit-"

            "You are right about that, but when has that ever stopped Angie?" Lottie's face snapped up to his and she saw that the smile crinkled the corner of his eyes. "She really misses you. Wants you to be the godmother to the twins. You did, after, make our relationship possible."

            "I don't know about all that nonsense," she states, "you are quite a catch." It was his turn to blush. His hand came up and he rubbed the back of his neck. He started to stutter and Lottie just stared at him for a moment. Letting him squirm. "Besides Cullen, you were the one who wanted to stop taking the lyrium." She said gently, "I just helped."

            "And changed my view point on mages." He pointed out as he used a foot to push his bags under the bed.

            Again she waved away his comments. "All you." Slowly she started backing out of the room. Her eyes turning wild. His brow furrowed as he watched her. She cleared her throat as she stepped out of the door. "Dorian went and got food. Orlesian." A forced smile twitched onto her lips. "It's in the den-"

            "Scarlett." Cullen started when Lottie jumped. Her eyes momentarily widened in panic before she turned to face the new comer. "A word?"

            "S-sure!" She forced out. Worry began to nag at Cullen. He didn't know this man, but it was probable that was he here to help. "Just a moment while I-"

            "Who's this?" Cullen asked, attempting to come to her rescue. He took the man in. Elf, and unusually tall for one of his kind. Or he looked so in comparison to the woman next to him. He stood with his back straight; proud. Gray eyes sliced to him, his brows pulling down as he regarded Cullen.

            "Apologies, Scarlett. I was unaware that _another_ had arrived." His tone was clipped. Cullen had an immediate dislike of him.

            "No, it's okay." She held out a hand in Cullen's direction, "The fault is mine. Solas, this is Cullen. He has military training and will be a great help in the weeks to come." Her hand swept through the air toward the other man, "Cullen, this is Solas. He is Sera's older brother and one of the reasons we know Corypheus is back."

            "I didn't think Sera had any connections to her family anymore." Cullen stated as he held out a hand. Solas shook it before taking a step back.

            "It is something I am attempting to rebuild." His smile didn't quite reach his eyes.

            "I'll see you later?" Lottie didn't seem quite sure of herself. Cullen started to really worry about her. It was unlike the Inquisitor to behave in this manner. He however didn't say anything as the two disappeared from his door way. With a silent sigh Cullen left the room, headed in the opposite direction.

            Food sounded divine.

 

Lottie led Solas down a few different hallways before she made it back to her temporary room. She knew this talk was coming. She had hoped though that it could be delayed just a little longer. Perhaps to _never_. She hated talking about what had happened. Memories were being stirred up, old anxieties coming out of the wood works like termites.

            There was so much to do, and it seemed like a huge waste of time to talk about the spontaneous life affirming sex they had last night. She knew that he had a right to answers, about her and her blighted past. He was probably worried about his sister and her role in his life. She knew she was. Sera was probably chomping at the bit, snarling like a caged animal. Poor Daisy. She had seemed so sweet.

            Gods how she wished she could just go back to being a bartender who's greatest worry was 'did they have enough tequila to last the night'. How could she have failed in something as monumental as this? Seriously how hard was it to make sure that the Magister was _dead_? He looked dead, didn't have a pulse. She should have burned his body, made sure of it.

            Her gut clenched and she covered her mouth with the back of her hand. She quickly walked back and forth, trying to hide the tears that were threatening to overflow. Lottie wasn't sure she could do this again. Loosing Lucy-

            Violently she wrenched her thoughts away from her sunflower. She wasn't the only one to be lost just the closest. Again she shoved at the memories, pushing them away from her mind before they could spiral to _that_ place.

            "Scarlett?" Solas asked gently. Too gently. Like she was fragile and was about to shatter into a thousand tiny fragments. She wasn't. A bitter laugh flowed past her lips before she could stop it. She couldn't. Too much depended on her, she had to suck it up. Put her big girl panties on and march through come hell or high water. She twirled around again, intent on pacing a hole into Varric's floor.

            Suddenly she was yanked to a halt. His hand rested on her upper arm. She stared at it for too long, just a moment too long. Arms wrapped around her and she sucked in a stuttering breath, praying that it didn't turn into a sob. Which it did because the universe hated her. It was stupid. She was stupid. The handsome man holding her was stupid. She was better than this. She didn't break just because death loomed-

            And there she went. Spiraled into that dark corner of her mind. The looming presence of the death that almost wiped her from the face of the world. Her limbs started to shake as she was pulled into the memory. A ghost of pain slid through her body as she remembered.

            _Three ribs broken, four fractured. Blood gushed from the wound over her eye. One bullet in her shoulder, another in her chest. A myriad of lacerations covered her body, blood flowing freely from each of them. How she was still moving she would never know. The adrenaline high of battle was still riding her hard._

_Stumbling backward she choked on her own blood. Punctured lung then. She knew the signs. She was okay with this end. Her head spun from blood loss. A smile crossed her lips. Fucker was dead. She was staring at him. His eyes were placid, empty. He couldn't hurt anyone ever again._

_Her legs collapsed out from under her. Her eyes slipped closed and it was almost impossible to open them again. Hands groped her, pulled her close. A body wrapped around hers. Her name falling from their lips over and over again. Pleading with her. 'Please, open your eyes.'_

_'You can't just die.'_

_'Come back to us.'_

_'We won't lose you too.'_

_'Selfish woman!'_

            It played over and over in her mind. She had been so certain that she was going to die. But then Varric had called in a favor with an old friend and she was _forced_ to live. Even though all she wanted was to die. She had been so tired. Not just physically, but mentally. She wanted it to end.

            Bone deep tired, a tired that stemmed from the soul. She couldn't face another day on this earth. So much blood and death. So many faces that were blank, they looked so peaceful and how she _ached_ to join them in their oblivion. She did her duty to the world. He was gone! Why did she have to suffer this world simply because _they_ wanted her too?

            "Just let me die!" She screamed as she ripped away from the arms that held her. The world blurred, spinning around and around. Her hands ripped at her hair, batting away the ones that were reaching for her. She couldn't, wouldn't. Her stomach heaved and she fell to her knees; emptying the contents of her stomach onto the floor. Her arms gave out and her eyes rolled into the back of her head.

 

Slowly she sat up. Her mouth was sour and her throat raw. She passed a hand over her face; the other tucked against her stomach and closed her eyes tightly.

            "When was the last time you ate?" A voice spoke. She jumped and looked up. Bull was sitting in a corner, eyes firmly fixed on her face. Quickly she averted her eyes away from him. She was ashamed of how she acted. None of them needed to know how she felt. It didn't matter. "Boss." There was a demand in his tone and she flinched at it.

            "Uh… day before last?" She ventured, remembering the only thing she had been pumping into her system was alcohol. "Unless cookies count." She thought she ate at least three of them.

            "They do not." Another voice spoke up. She flinched again. Dorian. She was in deep shit now. His voice carried a wounded note that was hidden under seething anger. "How long?"

            She knew what he meant. What else could he mean at this moment? Still though she responded with, "How long what?" Because they were her little insanities that didn't need to be shared with the world. And damn it they weren't supposed to know.

            Something shattered on the wall and she curled further in on herself.

            "Dorian." Bull barked.

            " _Fasta vass._ " He called out before marching from the room, slamming the door behind him.

            The silence in the room stretched. She knew that Dorian had asked the question that was on both of their minds. Bull waited. He could be patient. He could wait an eternity. Lottie knew this; she knew so many things about them. All of them. She had to be strong, there was no alternative.

            Slowly he stood and crossed the room. She pulled in on herself, tugging the blankets up; wishing the world would go away and she could wallow in peace. The morning had started out so promising too. Well, it wasn't fantastic but it was better than right now.

            Bull came to a stop next to her bed. The sound of something sliding across a surface grated into existence. "Here." It was a word, a soft word. One that pulled Lottie from where her mind was. She looked up in his general vicinity. A glass of—what she wished was vodka—water held in his hand. Gently she took it. Once the first sip was past her lips she drank like a woman who was dying of dehydration in the desert. "Want to talk about what happened?"

            "Did you want to talk when you became Tal Vashoth?" She bit out then instantly wished she could take it back. "Bull I'm sorry. That wasn't-"

            "No, it wasn't." He conceded. "And as far as I remember, you crawled up my back and beat me into the ground." The bed dipped under his weight and his hand came out to pull her chin up. "But that isn't what you need right now."

            "Katoh." She breathed, unwilling to talk about what happened. His eyes narrowed and nostrils flared. He breathed deeply before nodding and walking toward the door. "Just… give me some time okay?"

            "Dorian will need answers." His voice was rough and she knew that she disappointed him. It hurt knowing that little pieces of her were breaking off. "You owe him that."

            "I know." She whispered to the now empty room.

            With an iron will she pulled herself from the bed, taking the covers with her. Silently crossing the room to the bathroom. She stood there a moment, in the dark. She felt so lost. Broken. It had been so long since she felt like this.

            Pushing through the emotions she flicked on the light and reached for a tooth brush. _Brave face_ , she thought. The world needed her, broken or not. Her eyes strayed to a pair of scissors.

            Rinsing out her mouth she reached for them and started to cut.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little glimpse into Lottie's past. She's broken and doesn't know how to cope without alcohol. Hope you are enjoying so far. I really dig this story and I hope you are too. That is, after all, the goal of writers everywhere. To write something that people enjoy.   
> As always feedback is appreciated.


	7. Three in the Morning is a Good Time*

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Solas cooks for Scarlett. And Dorian is a snitch!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I should have said this in chapter 5, all NSFW will have an * in the chapter title. 
> 
> That being said there is more NSFW ahead. Also feels.
> 
> Enjoy.

By the time Lottie finished and gathered the courage to emerge silence reigned supreme in the house. Every light was off and people had drifted off to sleep. Her hair hung wet around her shoulders, no longer dangling to her waist. When it dried she knew that it would form curls that would reduce the length to around her chin. She needed a change. It looked horrible and she had no doubt that Dorian would attack her in the morning.

            Slowly she drifted. Varric's house was huge so it was easy to get lost. He had a library, a billiard room, a den, a TV room, and an indoor pool. So many rooms seem to be without a designation. Softly she opened each door, pausing before she did so to listen; making sure she wasn't disturbing someone on the other side, that no soft breath came from within.

            Eventually she found herself standing in the library. Growing up in the system had been rough. She didn't have any friends and it wasn't something that she liked to dwell on. But books, books _called_ to her in a way that could shatter her soul. She loved reading, often stayed up far past what she should to devour them whole. And it made sense that an author like Varric would have a library that could give her an orgasm just walking in the door.

            Her fingers ran over the covers of books. Pausing she read several titles before moving on. Eventually she decided on a well-worn book penned by owner of the mansion. Pulling it from the shelf and tucking it against her she looked for a corner with a lamp.

            A sigh brought her up short. Wincing she started to back pedal, not wanting to deal with anyone at this moment. However the gods of the universe abso- _fucking_ -lutely hated her. In her haste to get away she crashed into a table, knocking several heavy bitch ass tomes to the ground and stubbing her toe on a chair. Cursing softly she hopped on one foot, book still clutched tightly to her chest.

            "Graceful." Solas chuckled.

            _Fuck me, of bloody **course** its him_. She thought glaring at the table and its traitorous ways. "Who puts a table smack dab in the middle of an escape route?" She quipped as she turned around, thoroughly caught. She could always fake another panic attack, but honestly who would believe two in one day? He probably would if she started screaming again about death but that would bring the whole household and she _really_ didn't need that.

            "Master Tethras apparently." He joked easily and some of the tension eased inside of her. He wasn't forcing her to talk about-

            Nope, not going down there again.

            "You're up late?" She said instead, like it wasn't obvious.

            "As are you." He countered. They stared at each other for a long tense moment. Just then her stomach decided to betray her like the blasted table. It rumbled so loud that she was positive she saw dust drift down from the ceiling. A blush coated her face; she could feel it stretch up toward her ears.

            _Fucking void take me now_.

            "The hair is nice." He offered up, attempting—and failing—to hide the smile on his face.

            Her free hand darted up to the short strands. "Yeah, an existential crisis tends to do weird things to a person's psyche."

            "Is that what happened?"

            _Fuck_. _Me._

            She sighed and her shoulders crumpled in on themselves. Bringing up a hand she tried to tuck her hair behind her ear, grasping at the end of the strands when they weren't as long as she was expecting them to be.

            "It is not something we need discuss if you wish." He spoke softly. "We can sit quietly on opposite ends of the room pretending the other isn't here if you desire."

            Worrying her lip between her teeth she looked up at him from beneath her lashes. Another loud rumble from her stomach reminded her that she was hungry. And suddenly she wasn't so interested in being alone.

            "How about we get food instead?" She asked, flushing when she realized that he might not be hungry. "If you want to, that is." She added quickly. It was easier with him, than the others. He didn't know, wasn't aware of why she walked a knife's edge between sanity and death. Didn't look at her with pity in his eyes when she did something strange.

            "That would be pleasant." He smiled, causing a dimple to appear on each side of his face. She nodded; book tucked under her arm and led the way to the kitchen. He was quiet the whole way.

            When they finally made it to their destination she gently set her book down on the counter and opened the fridge. "Anything in particular you are craving?" She asked; face falling when she realized that Varric didn't have _any_ food in his house. He needed to do some shopping too. Turning away she opened the pantry.

            "What do we have to choose from?" His voice came from right behind her. She jumped like a scalded cat and crashed into the shelves. Her ankle twisted and she started to go down, hands held out in front of her and a gasp on the tip of her tongue. Warm, strong, callused hands wrapped around her waist and tugged her into his chest. "Are you always this graceful?" She could practically hear the smile in his words.

            "Wipe that smirk off your face buddy." She groused as she tested her ankle. Putting the slightest bit of pressure on it caused pain to shoot up her calf. Wonderful.

            "As you wish." She glanced up at his words to see if he listened but it was still there.

            "Horrible liar."

            "I am quite skilled at lying; however I do not feel inclined to do so at this moment." There was that damned dimple again.

            "Well, that's a relief." She couldn't help but smile back at him, "Here I thought that the fabled Dread Wolf was nothing more than a fairy tale to frighten young children."

            "And short women."

            "Did… did you just?" She gasped at him. "Hey! My height is perfectly acceptable!"

            "Do you still need a booster seat when you are in a car?" She jabbed fingers into his side when he started to laugh at the look on her face. She couldn't help but laugh along though. It was like a damn breaking free. She gave him her entire weight and he didn't disappoint her. She pressed her face into his shirt to muffle the noise. "What a lovely sound." He whispered when she was finally able to rein herself in and cease making noise.

            "Is that your attempt at lying?" She asked as she hobbled away from him, "Because I have to say I'm not impressed." His hands stayed on her waist, steading her.

            "That was not a lie." Her stomach rumbled again, "Ah, we are forgetting the reason we made this trip." He swept her up in his arms and she flailed a little, not used to being picked up at the drop of a hat. "I shall find something for us to eat."

            "My brave hunter."

            "I believe the appropriate term would be 'gatherer'." The smile was still on his face.

            "Of course." She nodded as he deposited her gently into a chair.

            He turned out to be a fabulous cook. Quickly whipping a meal together. The smells were divine as he placed an omelet in front of her along with a side of sausage and hash browns. A glass of milk followed swiftly afterwards.

            She groaned as she took the first bite. It was brimming with cheese, fresh spinach, onions and ham. "Where did you learn to cook like this?" She asked as she tucked into the food with more zeal then she felt in a long time.  

            "My parents were rather busy when I was young." She glanced up at him, that infernal smile still on his face as he watched her eat. "We had nannies and cooks of course."

            "Of course." She jabbed, because they were rich and that was obvious.

            "Sera ran them off every chance she got. They quit every other week," and that sounded _exactly_ like Sera. "Not all of them could cook well so I found myself either facing take out or learning to fend for myself and the younger sister."

            "How noble of you." She stated with a raised brow. "Cooking for the younger sibling."

            "I can be very generous." He retorted. The way he said it sent a trail of heat down her body to pool between her legs. She remembered all too well how _generous_ he could be. He watched her, the smile gone except for a shadow of a cocky smirk. "So, was everything Vivienne told me about you a lie?"

            "Depends on what she told you." Lottie responded around a mouthful, hand covering her lips. Her hand snaked out toward the glass of milk; she gulped a large portion down before returning to the food. "Pancakes, that's what we should have made."

            "Waffles." He countered, jabbing his fork in her direction, "And very little. You were left alone in the world at a young age, several different homes while growing up until you disappeared after turning eighteen."

            "Well, she wasn't wrong per say." She says thoughtfully, debating on what exactly to tell him. Using the hash browns she scooped up the last of the cheese that had dribbled from the omelet and regarded him with steady eyes. "My parents died when I was four, not six. I don't remember much other than hiding under the bed while the robbers stripped everything of value. After that I was ushered from one place to another in the system. Didn't make friends, didn't talk much. When I turned eighteen I vanished. Six months later enter Corypheus." She took another drink of milk, "The rest is history."

            "You speak so frankly about it." He stated as he pushed his now empty plate away.

            "It happened a long time ago. I had time to adjust."

            "Like you did to what happened ten years ago?" She sucked in a breath and stared at the table. "Forgive me. That was unkind."

            "No, it was… fair." She judged, poking at the wound that was so recently ripped open, it was tender but not quite as raw as it had been a decade ago. "I was young and convinced that I was more important than I actually was. Deluded myself into thinking that I was the only one that could stop him. In the end I was, but it came at a horrible price."

            "One that made you wish for death?"

            "Yeah." Her voice had gone monotone.

            "You were very young to face such tragedy." His voice was kind and she didn't think she could bear it.

            "When else does tragedy strike?" She challenged; willing anger to take the place of pain. "Should it strike when I am old and unable to cope? When I am weak and confined to a bed? No, better it strikes early and teaches me the ways of the world."

            "That is a dark outlook on the world you have."

            "Well, my world wasn't exactly brimming with sunshine." She shot back, mood starting to sour.

            "Forgive me. I have pressed to far." He stood when she attempted to rise, walking around the corner of the table. "Here, allow me to make reparations for my rudeness."  She watched him closely while he carefully pulled her foot toward him, crouching he rested it against his leg. Gently he tugged her sock off, pressing the joint. "Merely sprained." He commented as a glow started around his hand.

            She crooned softly as the pain eased. "I never did get the hang of that." She whispered. It felt like the foot was being bathed in hot water mixed with healing herbs; in short it tingled.

            "Of what?" He asked. And when he looked at her like _that_ … well it wasn't a mystery why they bumped ugly bits all of a sudden.

            "Healing." She whispered, "I'm built for destruction." He leaned forward and inspected her ankle again; making sure he got the last of the inflamed muscles.

            "Not everyone has the touch," he assured. "Just as some are not destructive." His fingers trailed gently up her calf and she stretched out her foot. Her toes brushed against his stomach, unintentionally caressing the taught muscles she felt there. He started to knead her calf while rolling her foot one way, then another. Her head dropped back and a moan _may_ have slipped from between parted lips.

            Quickly she sat up and yanked her foot from his grasp. His hands stayed where they had been. Her face flushed again. Gods above she was such a fucking-

            "So full of beautiful sounds." He whispered as he looked at her.

            Lottie wasn't sure who reached for who but suddenly they were pressed against each other. Lips locked and fingers tangled in each other's clothes. With numb she started for the buttons of his shirt—the person who invented them needed to be shot. He growled into her mouth as he fumbled with the ties around her waist. It turned into a snarl and he kissed his way down her neck, paying extra attention to the mark he left the night before.

            "Skin." She breathed against his shoulder as he worked her pants down. "Off." Incoherent words fell from her lips; she was still stuck on his buttons. "Off." She insisted, tugging at his shirt. She smiled when he growled again; it was full of need and desperation. His hands vanished from her pants and she took over as he worked to get his shirt off. Stepping out of them she reached for him, helping him push his shirt off of his arms now that the buttons were undone.

            His hands found the edge of her shirt and he started to tug upward on it while she busied herself with his pants. For some _stupid_ reason he was wearing jeans at—she glanced at the clock—three in the morning. "Are buttons designed to be this way?" She snarled as she struggled. He laughed and brushed her hands to the side, shirt forgotten.

            They didn't make it all the way off of his luscious thighs. Her shirt ended up half off, bunched around a bicep. When he reached for her she leapt into his arms. He caught her, arms pulling her further up so she could lock her legs around his waist. Palming her ass he groaned as he slid into her.

            "Drenched." He breathed and she didn't have the sanity to be embarrassed at this moment. Perhaps later. Her hands locked around his head and she guided his lips to hers, tongue darting into his mouth.

            She did sinful things that stole his breath with that tongue. Each thrust into her was bliss. Strumming his magic over her skin earned him a most delicious whine that shot straight to his groin. He grinned against her lips as he laid her on the table. His hand traveled from its position on her ass to the back of her knee, hoisting it higher. She trashed under him, raising her hips to meet his every thrust.

            There was nothing gentle or slow about this. It was fast and rough. She mewled into the silence as he laved kisses across her bare skin. His free hand found its way to her breast and he rolled a nipple between his fingers. The sharp gasp she gave when he tugged against it almost undid him.

            "Close." She whispered breathily. And oh was it a beautiful sound. She tilted her hips up and slightly to the side; guiding him to that one spot that made her see stars. Gods her destruction was so close and she _wanted_ it so bad. "Please, please, _please_." She begged.

            "Please what?" He pressed the words into her skin, seeking her breast with his mouth. Her fingers dug into his scalp and she let loose a muffled scream as she tumbled over the edge. He smirked into her, still thrusting; prolonging her release. A groan of his own escaped his lips as she spasmed around him. "Is that what you wanted?" He growled.

            She tugged his face back up to hers and nipped at his bottom lip. " _Yes._ " He smiled at that word, pressing a kiss to her jawline before working his way to her ear lobe. "Solas!" She moaned as he hit the same spot over and over again.

            "Again." He demanded, marveling at the way her snowy hair was fanned around her, creating a halo. "Say it again."

            "Solas." Her breath hitched slightly at the end and he grunted, hips stuttering as he tumbled after her into oblivion.

            "Really?" A dry voice echoed from the door way. "On the table? You know I have to tell Varric?" Solas was mortified.

 

Lottie covered her face with her hands. Solas was long gone; dismissed by the hostile look on Dorian's face. It just _had_ to be him that found them. What was he even doing up at this time of night?

            "Why are you awake?" She groaned as she slipped into her pajama pants.

            "You weren't in your room when I went to check on you." He shot back, "And _what_ did you do to your hair? What did it ever do to you?" He walked over and ran his fingers through her hair. "So… I'm assuming I was correct at this point?" He asked putting an obscene amount of pressure on the spot on her neck. She flinched and smacked his hand away.

            "Yes, alright. Yes. You were right. All hail Dorian and his infinite wisdom." She gave a little bow in his direction.

            "Oh, I rather like that."

            "Ass."

            "Bitch." He countered, tugging her shirt on properly. "Come on, let's get you cleaned up."

            "Do you have to tell Varric?" She pleaded.

            Dorian snorted, "Oh love there is _nothing_ you can offer that will silence me."

            "Damn." Lottie hissed. "I make shitty life choice."

            "I know." He assured, hand rubbing soothing circles on her back. "Not just life choice, truth be told."

            "You don't need to punish me further."

            "I really do." He said with little sympathy in his voice.

            They were moving through the house toward Lottie's room. Solas' door was shut tightly, though the light under the door stated he was still awake. Probably hating himself just like Lottie was at that moment.

            "He fed me, if that helps."

            "A little." Dorian allowed. And it did, anyone who could get her to eat was sent by the Maker himself.

            "You broke his bowl." She stated as she looked at the fragments on the floor. Really needed to clean that up.

            "I am aware."

            "We aren't very good house guests are we?" She asked as he closed the door.

            "Varric holds no illusions that we would be." He assured. "Into the shower, love. Think about your choices while you're in there."

            "Okay." She replied with a small voice. And she did. She thought about everything, which in hindsight was _not_ a good thing. When she emerged—squeaky clean and smelling of lavender—the crystal bowl had been cleaned up. Dorian was waiting on the bed, _Mages Weekly_ held loosely between his fingers as he flipped through the articles.

            "Are you ready?" He asked softly without looking up.

            "Yeah."

            Dorian stood, leaving the magazine behind. Together they entered the bathroom again. She pulled out a step ladder and sat down; silent as he fixed the mess she made of her hair.

            "What brought it on?" He prompted. Needing answers to the break down that happened yesterday.

            "Seeing him." She sucked in a rough breath causing Dorian's hands to still. He waited patiently while her shoulders shook. When she regained her composure he resumed cutting the edges of her hair. "It was like a slap to the face. Suddenly I was back there. Small, defeated, broken. I could feel the wounds... the bullets… it felt like they had never been removed."

            Dorian worked slowly, listening as she poured her heart out. He listened as she described the memory of that awful night with perfect clarity. He remembered his body huddled around hers, begging her to stay. She had been his only friend, and was still his best friend. Remembered what she looked like, hair covered in his blood; in her blood. She was smaller then, if it was possible. Remembered her pleading with them to let her go. Their refusal to allow her to slip away.

            So young to bear such a burden. And yet she had shouldered it willingly enough.

            He listened as she relived her final moments with Lucy. Remembered her holding onto the blond human; screaming and pleading with any god that would listen to bring her back. The bargains that she made, searching for a way to restore a life stolen too quickly. Bringing her back from the brink, interrupting a deal with a demon.

            Dorian listened while she talked herself hoarse. And when she was finished he pulled her into his arms and held her while she wept.

            "Why am I poison?" She whispered into shirt, clinging tightly.

            "You aren't." He whispered back, rocking her gently as they huddled together on the bathroom floor. "You are good." He affirmed, he would tell her this over and over until he was blue in the face. "Not poison. Never poison."

            Bull found them like that, clutching each other. Dorian whispering all the good things about her, and Lottie sleeping in his arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ugh, Dorian is my fav.


	8. Everything is Fine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time for battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh Maker... this... this is the chapter. This is all I have written, and I'm going to dig myself deeper into the hole by writing more. 
> 
> If you made it this far... Thank you for just reading it. Thank you.

When Lottie woke again it was to someone pounding on her door. Dorian grumbled and pulled her back to him. Mumbling 'no' and 'ignore it'. She almost did, until Leliana barked out something that shook her to her core.

            "He's on the move."

            Nothing could have roused her from her bed quicker. She and Dorian both shot out from under the covers, pushing each other around the room. He flew down the hallway and she ripped open her go bag, looking for her gloves.

            Once Lottie was fully dressed she bolted after Dorian, pausing long enough to throw open Solas' room to make sure he was up and ready to go. She needed him. He was one of the Pantheon, possibly her only shield against them. Josie was good, but not even she could stop them if they wanted Lottie behind bars. Or strapped to a lab table for dissection.

            Varric was in the den, a wide array of weapons spread out on the table. Cullen was barking orders. Leliana was in a corner, head set on and typing away madly. The Iron Bull was strapping grenades to his person. Dorian was fitting daggers into their sheaths and checking a pair of pistols. Solas stood in another corner, watching everyone silently. He had a gun holster on.

            Lottie took a look at the weapons and started filing them away. Daggers went on her thighs, she shrugged into a gun holster; a gun tucked under each arm, and two at the small of her back. Finally she pulled her well-worn bastard sword toward her. "You kept it?" She whispered to Varric when he caught her fondling it. Her hands ran down the blade lovingly, fingers following each imperfection in the blade.

            "What else would I do Severance Package?" Varric called back. She laughed at the name, yeah, she really named it that.

            "Boss." Bull called out.

            "Right." She answered, locking the blade into place on her back. "You know the drill people. No risks. I want all of us coming home when this is over. We get in, get dirty and get out." She looked around at her friends, her companions. "Corypheus will mostly likely do this in such a way that will cause a media shit storm. Leliana, what do we know?"

            "Not much, one of my little birds was able to discern he was planting a bomb made of pure lyrium somewhere on the premises." Her fingers clacked against the keyboard. "I have a team of dwarves ready to go; they will do a sweep of the grounds and notify us if they find such a thing."

            "Excellent." Lottie responded, "Cullen, do you have the experience to disarm something like that?"

            "Of course." He answered with a smile pulling up one side of his lips.

            "Wonderful. Bull, you are to stick to Cullen once we go through the portal. If there is such a bomb I want him to get there as quick as possible. Take extra potions and _no_ heroics." He nodded at her words and she moved down the line, tucking several spare clips of ammo into their proper positions. "Varric, I want you to find some place high and out of the way. Once your there I want updates on enemy movements. Dorian and Solas you're with me. We're going to punch a hole through their ranks and head straight for Corypheus." She looked around the room; faces were missing. "Where are Cassandra and Blackwall?"

            "Blackwall is moving Josie to a safe location." Cullen answered, "He was worried that she would be a target, once she is in position he has every intention of meeting us. And Cassandra is already in route. She was closer to the location then she was to us. She is just waiting for the go ahead."

            "Alright." She paused and looked around again, memorizing each face. Wondering if they would come back with her. Each of them gazed back at her. "Don't die, understand?"

            There was a choir of 'yes' from each of them. Her brows furrowed as she checked the blade, making sure it was free in the sheath.

            "Dorian, if you would be so kind?" She asked. He nodded at her, eyes watching closely. But she had shoved everything down. There was no room for error. They needed to put Corypheus back in the grave and quickly. She could have her mental break down later. Right now she was the Inquisitor. And the Inquisitor was a killing machine not a fragment of a woman.

            "Everyone has a radio?" They all chirped that they did.

            Dorian portal popped into existence and they walked through, leaving Leliana behind to orchestrate an extraction if needed.

 

Everything was on fire. And Dorian was laughing as he hurled it at his countrymen. A gun in one hand, spell in the other. Lottie covered him, a gun in both hands; rapidly firing shot at anything that moved and was covered in white and gold.

            "Does anyone have eyes on Corypheus?" She shouted over the chatter cycling through her ear. Everyone was calling out the position of enemies, giving them an advantage. Everyone was okay, relatively unharmed. Though it was still only the beginning.

            _Don't think that._ She chided as she motioned Solas to move up. He was keeping an eye out for the Pantheon, who so far had yet to show their faces. Probably locked away in some panic room deep below the surface. Which, she considered, was not a bad thing. If they weren't here they couldn't lock her up when this went south.

            And something told her it was going to go south.

            _Stop that._

            "Not yet Luck." Varric's voice crackled over the line. "I'll let you know when I see his ugly ass."

            Cullen's voice came next, "No sign of the bomb yet Inquisitor."

            "Are we sure this is the place boss?"

            "Do you see the Venatori scum crawling all over?" She snorted as she dodged around one of the zealots rushed her. Spinning she brought the heel of her foot down on his temple. He crumpled and she pumped him full of bullets. One to the head, two to the heart.

            "Bastard 'Vints." Bull responded.

            "I resemble that remark." Dorian shot back, causing a cackle of laughter to ripple through each of them.

            "Are they always like this?" Solas asked quietly as he slunk next to the woman they all willingly followed to this place.

            "Worse, usually." She tossed him a smile, though her eyes didn't feel it. "Honestly it's Cassandra that keeps them in line."

            "I shall attempt to do better."

            "Seeker! Good of you to join us." The sound of Bianca discharging cracked through the air. "Here I thought you'd miss the party."

            "Only you, Varric, would call this a party." She said snidely. Those two… Lottie thought they should just bang and get it over with; they both denied they had feeling for each other though. "Orders Inquisitor?"

            "Kill shit." Bull summarized for Cassandra.

            "Did we promote Bull when I wasn't looking?" Dorian asked, "Oh Maker this is the end of us."

            "I'll have you know my men are still alive." Bull quipped back.

            Lottie laughed, "Enough the both of you!" Her heart wasn't in it though; the banter kept the mood lighter. Killing—no matter if they deserved it—was rough on the soul. "Cassandra, come to me. We are located…" She trailed off and looked at Solas.

            "In the south east wing of the building, currently headed toward the center."

            "You heard him, meet us where ever we are. Dorian, join Bull and Cullen." He threw her the look that said _make me_. "Dorian, please."

            "If you die," he started as he ran past her, "I will shove a spirit into your corpse and make you my servant until it rots away."

            "Promises, promises." She called out as he disappeared around the corner.

 

Cassandra found them—after like twenty minutes of running blindly through the place. She was clad in a bullet proof vest, and anti-spell gear. The stuff was old, probably from the last time they butted heads with the Venatori.

            Lottie nodded once when she showed up, machine gun slung across her chest, grenades at her waist.

            "Who's that?" Cassandra asked with a skeptical look in her eye.

            "Solas, Cassandra. Cassandra, Solas." Lottie breathed as she snuck a peek 'round her cover. Bullets rained down upon her.

            "Their fucking." Came Bull's voice through the mic. Lottie turned scarlet. And there was their 'worse'.

            "She does _not_ need to know that." She ground out through gritted teeth.

            "It's rather juicy gossip love," Dorian defended, because of _course_ he fucking did. "I'm planning on taking an ad out in _Val Royeaux Times_."

            And he totally would. Lottie had to end this here and now.

            "My love life is my own." She fired blindly from behind her hiding spot. "Stop meddling, stop telling, mine."

            "Seconded." Solas sounded off. She threw him a dirty look. She didn't need his help herding her people back into a line. They were her ducks damn it.

            "But did you have to do _it_ on my table Luck?"

            "When did-?!" Lottie was absolutely flabbergasted. "Alright peeps, mind back on the mission!" This was obviously a discussion for a different time.

            "You never change do you?" Cassandra asked. Solas' head whipped toward the Seeker so fast Lottie would have sworn he got whip lash.

            "I have totally changed." She defended.

            "Oh yes, she's reformed."

            "Turned over a new leaf."

            "That is enough from the peanut gallery!" She shouted as she burst from behind her cover. "Varric how about some sniper fire? Please!" Anything to get them to stop. Gods she was going to have to apologize to Solas. And if the look on his face was any indication, explain Cassandra's remark.

            Like she needed this distraction while people were shooting bullets at her.

            Varric chuckled into the mic. "Cover fire coming up Luck." Lottie sighed in relief when the rest of the team followed suit.

            "Cullen," Leliana barked, "the bomb squad found the lyrium explosive. It is in the lower levels. Sending coordinates now."

            "I'll take care of it." His reply was curt and confident. Exactly what Lottie wanted to hear at that moment. At least something was going according to the plan.

            And then… it went sideways.

            "Inquisitor." His voice was like oil. Vile, filthy and it left a nasty coating of bile at the back of her throat.

            "Corypheus."

 

Solas' eyes shot to the man that called out to Scarlett. His skin was pale, eyes red. Scars lined his face, giving his mouth a permanent twisted scowl. The man wore a red jacket, the collar pulled up. His hair was long and stringy. He was thin, a shadow of a man. Magic seemed to twist around the man, pushing everything in his immediate vicinity away.

            "Corypheus." Scarlett answered. Her tone raw, almost automatic. Before Solas could even begin to catch up with the events that were quickly spiraling out of control the Inquisitor was off. Running through the worst of them. Her pistols sweeping through the air, bullets racing from the barrels to embed themselves in her foes.

            He had been mistaken. She wasn't ruthless. She was demonic. Another change had washed over her when he wasn't looking. This was not the confident woman, nor the broken woman, this was… pure destruction. Anything that walked before her was swiftly cut down, either by the bullets she sprayed or the magic that lashed from her with just a _look_.

            And the look in her eyes, when she spun, hair bouncing around her ears, it sent ice through his veins. They were filled with a seething hatred that promised violence to any in her path. She moved with a fluid grace that only one intimate with battle on a personal level could achieve.

            Solas understood, now, why his brethren had called for her arrest. She was to be feared. And if time had the ability to tame a temper, he shuddered to think of what she had been at eighteen.

            It wasn't confidence that drove her, she wasn't _confident_ in her skills. As he watched her he realized that she _knew_ beyond a shadow of a doubt that she was the most dangerous thing in this building. And he thanked any being that was listening to prayers at this moment that she was on their side.

            If this woman ever decided the world needed to burn, nothing would stop her.

            Each movement she made, while swift, was unrushed. When she pulled the trigger someone died. Each decision was made with perfect clarity, nothing was wasted. He thought when she told him _I'm built for destruction_ that she was being hard on herself. It was evident that the woman was struggling with something on a deeper level. But she had been brutally honest. She pulled no punches. It was like watching a tidal wave wash over a city.

            She was death, and with the Child of the Stone whispering the movement of the enemy into her ear, she was omnipotent.

            "Mage!" The warrior woman barked. Scarlett had called her Cassandra. "There is little time for you to sit and stare at the Inquisitor."

            And so there was. Together the two of them trailed after the Inquisitor. He noted distantly, that everything in her wake was dead and there was little for the two of them to do.

 

Cullen stared at the bomb. A hole had been ripped into the wall to make room for it. "Maker's breath." He breathed as he delicately moved an assortment of wires around. "It is complex, but I can do it."

            "Good, get it done and let's meet up with the Boss." Bull stated. There was a slight grunt from the large man. "Grenade in the hole!"

            Cullen tucked down a little tighter and waited for the explosion. "Careful!" He hissed, "Do you want to set this thing off early?"

            "Corypheus." It was the Inquisitor. The line full of static and almost inaudible. The worry Cullen had for Lottie skyrocketed and he put a little extra speed into his movements.

            "That is not a good sign." Dorian panted. "Are you almost finished?"

            Cullen shot a glare at the Necromancer, a dark look. "This is a delicate process-"

            "Mage! There is little time for you to sit and stare at the Inquisitor."

            The Iron Bull and Dorian shared a look before they chuckled. "She's probably doing the thing." Bull wiggled his eyebrows at Dorian.

            "She is quite a sight to behold, that first time." Dorian almost wished he could go back and revisit the moment he saw her in battle. It was terrifying and inspiring at the same time.

            "Done." Cullen called out.

            "About damn time."

            "Can we clear the line so I can give Luck directions?" Varric grumbled through the line. The three of them shared a chastened look. Once Cullen had packed his tools away they made their way toward the center of the compound, climbing over the rubble and ruined grounds.

 

Varric swore as he pulled the bolt back and ejected a lodged bullet casing. He should have taken the time to take Bianca to the range and made sure everything was working properly. But there was a certain thrill to working the kinks out mid-fight.

            If he was honest with himself he lived for moments like this.

            The casing finally worked free and he pushed the magazine back into place, loading the next bullet. Looking down through the cross hairs he swept the field. "Six on your right, four on the left." Bianca discharged, the noise music in his ears. "Correction, five on the right."

            Luck was steadily making her way through their line. As usual Seeker was lagging behind. He was surprised that Chuckles was holding up as well as he was, under all the ribbing they had been giving the two of them.

            Varric continued to assist Luck, picking off another two while she mowed down the rest. "Moving position." He advised. She would take extra precautions this way. It wouldn't _look_ like she did, but he knew that she would take the time to check at least twice before moving. Pulling up the building schematics on his phone he rushed to the next roost.

            "Varric!"

            He grunted in pain and looked down at the hole in his chest. Blood started seeping through the red shirt he wore, turning it a deep crimson. Bad. This was bad. Cold swept over him.

            "Well. Shit." He never did get to tell Luck what Chuckle's answer was to his question. She wouldn't have believed him anyway.

 

"Moving position."

            "Kill the dwarf." Corypheus demanded, hand point up to the second floor. Lottie watched in horror, head turning slowly to follow the path that the Magister indicated. The world slowed when she heard a gun go off. Her hand stretched out; maybe she could redirect the bullet. Change its path. This couldn't happen. Couldn't be happening. She wouldn't let it. Not again. Please, anything but this.

            "Varric!" She called out, desperation in her voice. Let it have missed. He wasn't hit. It was fine. He was fine. She was fine. Everything was _fine_. This wasn't happening. Varric was fine. There wasn't a hole in his chest. He wasn't dead. It was okay. She would make this okay.

            "Well. Shit." Her eyes widened as she watched Varric topple over. He didn't move again.

            Varric was not fine. She was not fine. Her mind fractured. She could feel it, splintering, crumbling into dust. Where once it was whole, beaten, but whole, it was now gone. There was nothing left. It shattered into a thousand tiny pieces, none of them larger than a grain of sand.

            He couldn't be dead. _But he is_ , a dark nasty part of her mind whispered, _and its all your fault._

            But he couldn't be, he promised.

            _"Don't die, understand?"_ He had answered yes. So logically he wasn't dead. She could still fix this.

            The guns in her hands clattered to the ground. Bullets were too good for these people. Her head tipped back and she let a deranged cackle out of her lips. They were going to pay. No one touched her people and lived.

            And she was starting with the man whose blood drained from his face. Because this was all his fault.

            But it was okay, because she could fix this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hate me, you hate me, everyone hates me. WHAT HAVE I DONE?!
> 
> *Cries softly* I'm just... gonna go slink into a hole now...


	9. Take it Back

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... I think I'm going to add Dark!Solas as a tag to this, because there is a line in here that I think is brilliant and it is completely out of character for our beloved hobo lobo. And I won't take it back. 
> 
> Enjoy your angst.

The knife was in her hand before she could blink. It was sharp and parted the flesh on her forearm with almost no resistance. Blood flowed evenly from the wound; she was still cackling. She didn't think she could stop.

            He was gone. And it was her fault. Her fault that he was here. Her fault that he was up _there_. Her fault. He followed her here, but she could have made them stay. This wouldn't happen again. No more deaths because they saw her as an icon. A leader to follow.

            No more of her people would die.

            Throwing her hand out she made a fist and yanked it toward her, the other throwing up a barrier around her. The man who shot Varric was ripped toward her. He screamed, clawing at his throat. His eyes were rolling in his sockets.

            "Stop making that noise." Lottie growled. Her grip tightened.  It was pathetic. He made his bed, chose his side. Now it was time to pay the piper. "Did you even know his name? Do you know mine?" She hissed. His face was slowly turning purple. "Did you?!" Violently her hand shoved itself down, the man following, his face bouncing off the beautiful crystal floors.

            Using his momentum she lifted him into the air, her free hand pulling Severance Package from her back. With a vicious cry she sliced him clean in half. Lifeless his body fell to the floor. She lost herself then, and what came next.

 

When coherency filtered back into her she wasn't in the Pantheon Palace anymore. But she was covered, head to toe, in blood. Two of her guns were gone; she was bleeding from several wounds that were making themselves know through sheer pain. A hand was pressed to her side, trying to staunch the flow of blood and her radio was gone. Her other hand was still clenched firmly around her bastard sword. It drug across the ground, her limb too tired to even attempt to lift it.

            Blessedly silent it was. She didn't know _where_ she was but she needed to get off the streets and cleaned up. She was surprised that she wasn't surrounded by Templars with the way she looked. Then again, she was in Arlathan and the Chantry presence here was woefully thin, not to mention that the Elvhen Empire was surrounded by Tevinter. And while Tevinter followed the Chant of Light, they had a different approach toward mages than the rest of the world.

            Limping forward she started down the street. There was a line of cars down both sides of the street. She picked the most ostentatious one she could find and broke the window out of the back, tossing the sword in the back seat. Gingerly reaching her hand around she unlocked the door and climbed inside. The alarm blared into existence. Grumbling she pulled her remaining knife from her thigh and sliced through the wires.

            With numb fingers she searched for the power wires; snapping her fingers to bring a small light into existence. Locating the two red ones she sliced through and wrapped them around each other. _Please fucking work._

            She knew how to hotwire older cars, but sometimes the newer ones were bitches and it was more complex than she was willing to admit. When she tapped the two starter wires together though it roared to life and she was so very grateful.

            Throwing the car into drive she sped off down the road, looking for shelter, a gas station, or pharmacy, anything that would promise she could clean up and sew up the hole in her side.

 

In the end it was a pharmacy. Leaving the car running she limped inside. The teenage elf behind the counter looked absolutely petrified.

            "Shower?" Lottie asked hopefully, "Bathroom would be nice too."

            "N-no shower." He stuttered out, "Ba-bathroom is in the back." His shaky finger pointed the way.

            "Oh and kid?" She asked as she started down the aisle toward the slickly green door. "Be smart and don't call the authorities. There's five hundred in it for you if I come out of there and don't see any."

            Lottie didn't wait for a reply, just kept walking. It seemed to take forever, but on her way she snatched several boxes of bandages, the gauzy kind, none of that tiny shit with sticky stuff on both sides, and medical tape. She also found a bottle of liquid Elfroot. All in all she thought she was doing well.

            Once she reached the bathroom she proceeded to strip down and wipe every inch of her clean. Her hair would need to be washed properly, but at least it was tinged pink now and no longer dripping crimson. Her jeans and shirt were black so it was mostly a matter of just getting them relatively free of smelling like copper and piss. Paper towels were used to wipe off the blood on her skin.

            She was lucky the wound on her side was a knife wound. She didn't have to dig around for a bullet. Slapping four layers of gauze over it and an obscene amount of tape, she winced every step of the way.

            Satisfied she slipped her shirt back on, and with great difficulty her pants followed. She turned her attention to her arm, the wound was deeper than she had intended for it to be but thankfully not fatal. Gauze went on that too.

            Gathering up the now empty boxes and the Elfroot bottle she started for the counter, swerving at the last minute to pick up a bottle of vodka. The kid was still there, staring at her.

            "No authorities?" She asked, looking around. He shook his head quickly. "Good boy." Pulling her wallet out she slapped her bank card on the counter. "ATM?"

            He pointed just to her left. Man she was going blind. Slumping over to it she drained her account. It wasn't much, just her nest egg should shit hit the fan—which it did so she felt totally justified.

            "Pack of Marlboros." Slapping six hundred on the counter she waited while he pulled her requested item. Her hand swiped out quickly and tucking the pack in her pocket, the other grabbing the bottle of vodka. "Have a nice night." She called out.

            "Please d-don't come again!" The boy called after her. She chuckled at his words. She couldn't blame him.

            She was running on fumes. Gods it was getting worse; harder to keep her mind off of what-

            Lottie stopped herself. She couldn't go there. Not yet. She wasn't safe yet. Looking at the clock she read 11:33. Well, fast food joints should be open. Tossing the car into drive again she started a new search.

            Red Jenny was the first one she found. Pulling in she ordered three burgers, two milk shakes, and an order of fries. The elderly human stared at her skeptically as she paid. Lottie distinctly heard her mutter 'elitist elves'. She didn't deign to comment on the fact that the _human_ chose to live in an _elf_ dominant city. It was not Lottie's fault that her kind was snobbish bastards that had a firm grip on the political structure of the world.

            The food was devoured quickly.

            Next was to ditch the car and walk to a motel. And her phone.

            "Shit." She grumbled as she pulled it out of her back pocket. The screen was shattered but it still showed that she had twenty three unread messages and forty nine missed calls. Flipping it over she pulled the battery out and broke the little sims card. The phone clattered to the ground and she stomped it until it broke into three pieces.

            She couldn't let them find her. They were safer if they weren't with her.

            Lottie ended up in the seedier part of town, which was good. People didn't look too closely to others here. Too great a chance that someone would pull a gun, or magic, and end the looker. So she kept her head down and stumbled into a motel.

            "Hour, or night?"

            "Huh?" Lottie asked, blinking blearily at the old woman behind the counter. She was an elf with silver hair, brown eyes, and more wrinkles then she could count. Woman must be pushing a thousand.

            "Are you renting the room hourly, or do you want it for a full night?"

            "Oh, night will do just fine ma'am."

            "Name?"

            "Scarlett Lavellan." She replied automatically, and then cursed herself.

            "Lavellan… Dalish right? What are you doing this far from your clan girl?"

            Lottie watched the woman, mouth slightly ajar. Very few commented on the Dalish last name. "I never knew them." She lied. Of course she knew her clan, none of them wanted to keep her after her parents died. Said she was cursed. Fuck them.

            "Three hundred." The woman leaned forward and placed an arm on the counter.

            "That's outrageous!" Lottie seethed.

            "I'm not blind girl. You're running from something. Its seventy for the room, the rest buys my silence." The woman cracked a grin, revealing that she was missing several teeth. "Take it, or get out."

            With a sigh Lottie laid several bills on the counter. "Cheat."

            "Aye, but an honest one." The woman slid a key across the counter. "Room four." Summarily dismissed Lottie turned around while the old bitch resumed her crossword puzzle.

 

" _We come to you live from Pantheon Palace._ " The reporter on the TV said, the banner under her indicating her name was Ashalla Ghilain. " _Where earlier tonight there was an attempted terrorist attack._ "

            Lottie glared at the screen while she worked her still wet pants off her legs; her boots already littered the floor.

            " _While there have been no confirmed sightings this is believed to be the work of the Inquisitor. Several of her known conspirators were found fleeing the scene. No arrests have been made at this time. Authorities have commented that the woman was not among them and wish for the public to know they will not rest until her and her companions are firmly behind bars._ "

            "We _saved_ that eye sore from being blown up!" She screeched as she violently pressed the 'power' button on the remote. At least they got away.

            _Not all of them_.

            Tugging on the edges of her shirt she ripped it free of her body and hurled it at the wall. He wasn't supposed to die. None of them were. Gods, she'd have to write letters. _Interact_ with people she didn't even know.

            Bianca.

            "Fuck." The dwarf was going to kill her. Threatened as much when she met the woman for the first and _last_ time. "Fuck. Fu _ck_!" Her boot hit the wall, followed closely by the other one. "HE WASN'T SUPPOSED TO DIE!" She screamed.

            Lottie pulled the bottle of vodka toward her and tossed shit around until she found the cigarettes. Ripping the pack open and unscrewing the lid she gulped until her stomach was on fire and she felt like she was going to wretch. Popping a cigarette into her mouth and lighting it with a thought she sat on the edge of the bed and started to cry.

            Varric. Author and rogue. A Child of the Stone, though he never had any Stone sense. He'd pulled her ass out of tight situations that none of them thought they could come back from. Saw her through the battle of the Dales and the Hissing Wastes. Suffered alongside her through that _ridiculous_ ball Josie made them go to in attempt to gain favor with the Empress of Orlais. Robbed her blind when they played Wicked Grace.

            He said she was _lucky_ and called her Luck. She had scoffed at him and asked which kind of luck. Well, guess she knew now. Bad. It was bad luck. Everything she touched turned to ash. In the early days he had told her to run, because her story wouldn't end happily. She just smiled at him and said that her life was already unhappy, why not make the world a better place.

            She should have listened, and _he_ should have taken his own advice.

            Lottie glared at the tattoos on her arms. Names, places, deeds. It was a story of her past, what had happened, the people she lost, what was sacrificed so the world could sleep in ignorance for another night. She held onto everything. Now she would have to add Varric's name to the long list of things that were lost and she couldn't bear to do it.

            Poison. That's what she was. Her veins were coated with it, and when she bled it seeped into the world and killed everything around her. She didn't deserve peace, she was destruction incarnate. Varric didn't deserve what happened to him, but hanging around her it was inevitable.

            "Surprised it took this long." She growled, bitter at the world; hating herself. She lifted the bottle to her lips and drank again. Grinding the cigarette out and pulling another from the pack.

            She chain smoked until her throat was raw, and drank until the bottle ran dry. The world spun, but still it wasn't enough to drown out the pain. She cried in the corner until she had no more tears.

            Her fault. All her fault.

            And then she fell into an uneasy sleep, nightmares lurking at the edges of her mind.

 

_Lottie stretched across the bar, head swimming. It was just after closing and both Sera and Bull had gone home for the evening. She should head home too, but she wasn't in any state to drive home. There was a cot upstairs. She would sleep there and head home in the morning. Better safe than sorry. She didn't care if **she** died, but if she was responsible for the death of another, or worse a family? She couldn't have any more deaths on her hands. _

_"Scarlett," Solas whispered. Lottie turned and glared at him. So, it was a dream, because he shouldn't be here. Didn't fit into her fucked up life._

_"Be gone demon, I have no wish to play your games tonight." She always hated being in the fade. Hated dreaming, too many unknown variables. And demons were tempting creatures, able to grant wishes that no one else could._

_"I am no demon."_

_Lottie scoffed. "Fine, take your ass and run away before you die too." She turned and started toward the back room. "Take Sera and run. Hide behind the Evanuris. Pray the world doesn't burn."_

_"His death is not on your shoulders." He consoled as he followed her. She growled as his footsteps echoed behind her. "None of them are. You are not responsible for their choices." His hand closed around her arm and tried to spin her around._

_She did, but her hand was on his wrist. She wrenched it sideways breaking his hold on her, stepped under his arm and hauled it behind his back, slamming him into a wall at the end. "You know **nothing** Solas." She snarled, "All of this is because of me. No one else. All you see is a pretty face, inspirational words. Deeds that have been buried these last ten years. Did you witness what I'd been through? Were you there when he struck them from existence? All of them died because they followed a child into a war they weren't ready for." She shoved him further into the wall before spinning and disappearing up the stairs. The door slamming behind her, bolt sliding into place. _

_"Gods damned Dreamer bull shit. GTFO out of my dream." She grumbled as she glared at the door._

_"Eloquent." Solas called from behind her._

_Right, because a locked door in a **dream** would stop him. It didn't even stop him in real life. What made her think it would work here was beyond her. _

_"Why are you here?" She huffed, knowing that he wasn't going to leave her alone. And she needed the sleep if she was going to face tomorrow and go through with her plan._

_"The others are worried. As am I." He watched her with sad eyes, but there was something else in them. And it wasn't pity. "You disappeared, one minute you were there with Cassandra and I, gone the next." He looked around._

_"I'm not at the bar, if that's what you're thinking." She sighed. "I'm not stupid enough to go back there. Probably the first place Dorian checked."_

_"One assumes you are not going to reveal your location?" He hazarded; one of his eyebrow quirking upward._

_"Bingo." Lottie turned and headed for the cot, pissed that she forgot to set her wards. Drinking does that to her. Makes her forget, that's why she liked it so much._

_"Then I shall simply keep you company." He moved to her desk. A book appeared in front of him._

_"Why?" She asked with suspicion in her voice. Her eyes narrowed to slits as she watched him flip open the pages._

_"Misery loves company."_

_Darkly she crossed the room to the cot and flopped down; arm over her eyes. The quiet_ snick _of the pages turning every so often interrupting her attempts to blank her mind completely. She wanted to be numb, not think of anything. But this **asshole** was determined to drive her up the wall. _

_"Go."_

_"No."_

_"Excuse me?"_

_"You are excused."_

_She sat up suddenly and glared at the back of his bald shiny head. How had he come into her life? He'd known her… what… she thought hard. Four days? She counted._

_Day one: The bar when he picked up Sera._

_Day two: Paint ball._

_Day three: Sex._

_Day four: Mental break down, sex._

_Day five: Unmentionable things._

_So five days. He knew her five days and he thought he had a right to baby sit her?_

_"Fuck you."_

_"We did, twice."_ Snick _, another page turned. "I have a distinct feeling of being used."_

_Her mouth opened and closed several times. Okay, that was fair. But he hadn't exactly brought up the subject either so it wasn't just her fault in this. He was notorious for sleeping around. If anything she should feel used._

_"It's not like you are celibate or anything." There she went, firing off her mouth when she should just keep it shut. "How many women have you fucked?" And it just kept going! What was **wrong** with her?_

_The book snapped shut and the chair swiveled to reveal a murderous look on his face. She swallowed and shrunk in on herself. Oh gods, this was the talk. Stupid, she was so stupid. Wasn't what this what she wanted to avoid?_

_Panicked she looked for a way out. How long had she been here? Long enough for the alcohol to work its way out of her system? For her to function? Could she even wake herself up? Oh gods, that look was pure evil._

_"Yes, I fell upon you like a ravenous wolf." Something dangerous glinted in his eyes. "Ah wait, my memory misleads me. You all but begged for me to bed you."_

_"Did I? If it had been Bull or Varric who found me, maybe I would have moaned **their** names." She shot off. She wouldn't have, but he didn't need to know that. Bull was with Dorian and they were adorable together, and Varric… Bianca. "You just happened to be in the right place at the wrong time."_

_"Truly?" He bit out, standing and starting toward her, "We are so interchangeable to you that it doesn't matter who is inside you, as long as you're full?"_

_WHAM!_

_Solas' head snapped backwards and he stumbled away from her. His hand pressed to the side of his face. He nearly went down but didn't to Lottie's dismay. She should have hit him harder._

_"Ow." She winced and shook out her hand. Mother fucker had a steel jaw._

_"Touch a nerve, did I?" He asked, hand still pressed to his jaw. Lottie hoped that it carried into the waking world. He deserved it._

_This was not how the conversation was supposed to go. And she was sick of him._

Violently she ripped herself from the dream, hand throbbing. Looking down at it she realized that one of her knuckles was swollen and a finger was out of place. With a growl she reached down and snapped it into its proper position.

            "Bastard." She grumbled. If her hand was like this, then his jaw would be a beautiful reminder of the ass he was. Bull would be the most likely to comment on it. Man she almost wished she was there to see his reaction. Cullen would throttle him.

            If he was still even with the rest of her friends. They might have shunned him when she left.

            She kinda hoped they did, because at least then he would be safe. Because she liked him. Like _really_ liked him. And that was bad for his health. Which was why she felt like shit at this exact moment.

            Because she had begged for him to bed her. She knew it was him the moment he opened the door, and damn it to the Void and back but she was _ecstatic_ when he walked into the room. She didn't know what summoned him to her, but she hadn't been about to question it. Instead she opened her legs like the whore she was and spelled his doom.

            Tapping out a cigarette she lit it and moved into the bathroom. She'd have to be more vigilant in the future. There were draughts out there that made the drinker sleep so deep they didn't even enter the fade. She just had to find the right dealer.

            And then she would find Jowan. Because if anyone could bring back the dead, it was that blood wielding bastard. And he owed her a favor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's right, I went there. Solas shouldn't have said it, but he did.


End file.
